Balance of Chaos
by Macross VF1
Summary: Ranma mysteriously disappears without a trace. He comes back one week later but he is changed and has no memories of his previous life. This Ranma doesn't take crap from anyone, be they gods, sailor senshi, aliens or Nerima wrecking crew. *Chapter 4C up*
1. Alpha and Omega

Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma ½ has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma ½  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese "  
'Thoughts'  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
Chapter 1: Alpha and Omega  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
Nerima, Japan  
  
Ranma Saotome was nervous. Almost scared actually, though he wouldn't  
admit that to anyone, not even to himself. The reason for his  
uneasiness? An entire week of peace. Nothing serious had happened for a  
week except for the normal pounding of Kuno and a few cases of 'Proving  
that Humans can fly even though they don't have wings' courtesy of  
Akane's mallet. At first Ranma had thought it was nice to have some  
peace and quiet for once but as the days passed, he became more and more  
nervous.  
  
It's really quite easy to understand him. A normal week usually  
consisted of a challenger, someone out for his blood or Genma's, or a  
new suitor, or even all three. Of course one shouldn't forget all the  
malletings from Akane, glomps from Shampoo, schemes from Nabiki, and  
attempts on his life by Mousse, Kuno or Ryoga. Add a gender-changing  
curse to the mix, and the usual weirdness that is part of Nerima, and  
hey presto! You got a normal week in the life of Ranma Saotome.  
  
Now, since an entire week of peace had passed, he just knew that  
something BIG was waiting to happen. As he sat on the roof of the Tendo  
Dojo, he wished that whatever was brewing could happened so he could get  
back to his normal (?!) life. Of course since Murphy's Law always seemed  
to apply to Ranma, he should have remembered the saying "Be careful what  
you wish for" since just as he made the wish a black portal appeared and  
swallowed him without a trace.  
  
***  
  
One week later  
  
Nabiki Tendo sat down on a couch and idly switched through the channels  
on TV. The last week had been somewhat troublesome... Ranma had  
mysteriously disappeared without telling anyone, and the side effects  
were very interesting. Some people, like Kuno, Ryoga and Mousse,  
obviously celebrated Ranma's disappearance, while others, like Kodachi,  
Shampoo and Ukyo searched for Ranma in the hope of finding him and  
convincing him of just who he should choose as his wife. Of course the  
two groups met and that started violence on a very big scale. Soun and  
Genma just had to add to the craziness with their Operation Find The  
Groom and Happousai just took the opportunity to steal more women's  
underwear.  
  
The result of all this? Riots. BIG riots. Even for Nerima it had been  
violent and brutal. It had made it to worldwide-news (Courtesy of  
Nabiki, of course), and the government had to call in the military, not  
that it really helped.  
  
Nabiki sighed as she stopped for a moment to watch a sighting of the  
Sailor Senshi. Why couldn't she find the secret identities of those  
girls? She couldn't help to daydream of all the money she could make as  
their manager. Her thoughts turned sour when she thought of the riots.  
Sure she had made a lot of money selling the scoop to a reporter she  
knew, but almost all of it had been used to repair the house after the  
riots and Akane's temper. The riots had stopped but still, she really  
wanted Ranma back, after all he was her best source of income (Or so she  
told herself).  
  
Just as she was about to change channels, a big, white explosion filled  
the entire Television screen.  
  
***  
  
Five minutes earlier, someplace else  
  
A young man looked at a blood red horizon. One might have thought that  
the sun was setting but it really was a city burning that caused the red  
color. He sighed as he checked his chronometer. Only four and a half  
minute left until a full year since his arrival. He idly wondered what  
the next place would be like. He hoped for some peace and quiet for once  
like when he had lived with those marionettes, but he just knew that his  
wishes would be ignored as so often before. It seemed like wherever he  
went, fighting always followed. 'Just my luck that I would be the  
personification of Murphy's Law.' He thought wryly. A small smiled  
formed on his lips as his memories of times long past surfaced. 'I just  
know what Tuvok and Seven of Nine would think of that thought though.'  
  
"Oh well. Time to brief the squad." He said out loud. He turned and went  
down some stairs.  
  
- - - -  
  
"ATTENTION!" A big man in the corner called out. Everyone inside the  
briefing room stood up as the young man entered.  
  
"Man, why does it seem that you undisciplined, filthy, worthless pieces  
of crap always find a new way to aggravate me?"  
  
"'Cuz you love us!" A tall woman proclaimed with a wide grin. The rest  
of the assembled men and women chuckled.  
  
The young man chuckled as well. "Yeah, that's the problem" He instantly  
turned serious. "And that's why this seem so hard... In a little less  
than one minute you will find out if the story I told you when we met is  
true or not."  
  
This seemed to calm down the squad instantly. Many looked almost  
suspiciously at the young man.  
  
"Yeah, not one of you believed me when I showed up at first and I know  
for a fact that most of you still don't. Well, consider yourselves  
lucky. I'm hereby giving you the last orders you'll ever get from me as  
your commanding officer. This war is almost at an end. I'm authorizing  
a full-scale attack on the last strongholds. Any and all reinforcements  
are to be called in. As a little going away present I'm leaving my VR-  
052 to Major Black who will take command when I leave. And believe me,  
if you fail I will personally come back and kick your sorry carcasses so  
hard that your grandchildren will feel it. What the heck, I'll come back  
and kick you anyway!"  
  
"Yeah, we love you to!" The tall woman from before yelled. Another round  
of chuckles followed.  
  
"You better believe it! Now go forth and Kick Ass!"  
  
"YES SIR!" Came a massive response, before the world turned white.  
  
***  
  
Five minutes earlier, Juuban, Japan  
  
All of the Sailor Senshi had gathered to defend against a massive attack  
of... something. For days, big, blue, humanoid shaped beasts doing  
massive property damage had attacked Juuban. The first attack consisted  
of only one of the beasts, but for each attack the numbers doubled, and  
the beasts got weapons and equipment that made them even harder to  
fight. The last attack had consisted of 24 beasts and the Senshi had  
only barely defeated the invaders.  
  
No one really knew who the enemy was or what their purpose was. The only  
real piece of information that had been gathered was the fact that these  
creatures was not part of the Negaverse or any other old adversary. Not  
even the infamous Time Gate had provided any clues, as it for some  
reason did not show more than a thick mist.  
  
This time however the Mercury Computer had picked up a large energy  
fluctuation, presumed to be a portal of some sort. The Senshi had  
quickly gathered at the indicated spot, only to find hundreds of the  
blue creatures emerging from a big portal.  
  
"They are so many!" Sailor Moon whined.  
  
"We know that already, meatball head. Now shut up!" Sailor Mars said  
while surveying the force from the rooftop that the Senshi had gathered  
on. Inwardly she wanted to whine just as much Moon. It was just not  
possible to take every single beast this time. The last attack had only  
been truly suppressed by a good amount of luck i.e. Sailor Moon tripping  
at the right moment. Or that was at least what Mars thought. She shook  
herself and concentrated on the force again. It seemed that the stream  
of enemies was stopping. That was when she noticed something else.  
  
"Hey!" She called out to get the attention of the others. "Isn't that  
another type of creature?"  
  
"I think so." Mercury said while bringing up the Mercury Computer. She  
got an image of a small and rather cute looking, brown creature. "Yes,  
it's most definitely another type and it seem to be leading the others."  
  
"Well what are we waiting for?" Sailor Jupiter said while cracking her  
knuckles. "Let's get it!"  
  
"Well it seems like a plan." Sailor Neptune said. "It's not like we have  
a chance against all those blue monsters."  
  
"But it's so cute! Can't we find another way?" Sailor Moon asked. She  
only got glares for answers.  
  
Moon sweat dropped under the combined glare. "I still think it's cute  
though." Sailor Moon muttered to herself. "Oh well, everyone ready?" She  
asked and glanced around. She got a nod in confirmation from each of the  
Senshi. She turned and prepared to leap down.  
  
***  
  
At the same time as the Sailors prepared to attack, the brown creature  
smiled in anticipation. His bioengineered soldiers had proven  
successful. Sure the first attacks had been put down but those were just  
test runs and the data collected had been most useful. The defenders of  
this area had proven to be formidable adversaries but they just had no  
hope against this many soldiers. His home planet had been destroyed and  
but he and his people had been able to escape since they were off planet  
on a scouting mission. The last of the soldiers came out from the ship-  
surface teleporter, and he started giving out orders. Soon, very soon,  
the attack would begin.  
  
***  
  
Suddenly a bright column of light shot down from the sky between the two  
forces, followed by a loud boom as the light made contact with the  
ground. Everyone in the vicinity was thrown back by the blast and most  
windows nearby found it hard to stay in one piece.  
  
"Did they just shoot at us?" wondered Sailor Venus out loud as she and  
the other senshi gathered them selves and stood up after the blast.  
Turning to the blast area they saw something they did not expect.  
  
The blast had torn a ten feet wide and one-foot deep crater into the  
concrete. In the middle a figure was kneeling. As the figure stood up it  
became very obvious that this was a man. A man in a very impressive  
black armor with red trim. Smooth and rounded armor plates covered the  
entire body. The man's face was covered with something that looked like  
a breathing mask while a shiny metal plate covered the forehead and a  
visor shadowed the eyes. The hair was black as night and some of the  
senshi got a dreamy look in their faces (Let's face it, the inner Senshi  
have way too much imagination when it comes to males).  
  
***  
  
Freelance reporter Ichiro Kaneda couldn't believe his luck. First he had  
spotted the Sailor Senshi preparing to fight some unknown force and now  
this! He hadn't had a break in ages and he was sure to capitalize on the  
opportunity before him. Of course he conveniently forgot the scoop he  
had only three days ago about the riots in Nerima. He had paid a lot to  
that Tendo girl but it had been worth it.  
  
  
  
***  
  
Sailor Mercury was one of the few senshi that didn't either have  
fantasies of pretty boys or a jaw firmly planted in the ground. Quickly  
she called forth the Mercury Computer to scan this new person. Too bad  
it was hacked.  
  
***  
  
The man glanced around and pressed a few buttons located on his left  
wrist, then suddenly things started to appear out of thin air. First was  
more bulky and angular looking arm- and leg armor. Then something that  
looked like a headset with an antenna by the right ear materialized.  
Followed by that was a big gun with a long barrel on the left shoulder.  
Finally both forearms got a curved blade that crackled with blue  
lightning as each hand was filled by a mean looking pistol.  
  
He turned to face the aliens as if daring them to move. An eerie silence  
settled over the battlefield.  
  
"Lets Rumble" was the only warning the aliens got.  
  
Immediately one of the alien soldiers got its head blown off followed by  
two others that were riddled with bullet holes. Each hit caused a small  
explosion after penetration, which left quite gruesome holes in the  
aliens. Not a pretty sight which left most people watching quite sick.  
  
"What are you standing around like idiots for?" Screamed the alien  
leader. "Destroy that puny human at once!!"  
  
The aliens seemed to snap out of a daze and began a headlong charge  
against this new threat.  
  
***  
  
Ami was greeted by a super deformed version of the armored man that  
appeared to be sorting through the Mercury computers files. A big pile  
of files littered the "floor" of the computer and it only grew bigger  
and bigger as the SD-man threw them over his shoulder. All the time the  
man could be heard muttering phrases like "Not interesting..." and "not  
enough pictures..."  
  
Suddenly the SD-man turned around and spoke to Ami: "Yo, sorry about  
this, but your computer was the nearest one that I could link to. Nice  
piece of hardware by the way. Now miss..." He paused as he held up a  
file. "...Sailor Mercury? Strange name... Could you please tell your  
colleagues NOT to attack me when I'm finished? If your files are any  
indication they probably thinks I'm quite a threat and I'm not in the  
mood to defend myself from a group of vigilantes dressed like something  
from a pervert's wet dream." Nodding dumbly Sailor Mercury prepared to  
go over to inform the rest of the group.  
  
***  
  
The man calmly dropped both pistols after having spent the ammo. Next  
the shoulder gun's barrel split in two and began crackling with barely  
suppressed energy. When the aliens were only 10 feet away, the gun  
released its payload in a howling roar that tore a 5 feet wide trench in  
the concrete. Anything within 20 feet of the beam got instantly  
incinerated and a house at the end of the street some 2 kilometers away  
crumpled as the beam hit it.  
  
***  
  
A scream of "Barbecue!!!" followed by an almost insane laugh could be  
heard from the Mercury Computer.  
  
***  
  
Still the aliens charged, as they were confident that their superior  
numbers would tip the battle in their favor once close combat ensued. It  
should be noted that mass-produced alien grunts are not known for their  
intelligence.  
  
The armored man blurred as he rushed forward to meet the charging  
Aliens. His arm blades crackled with power and neatly sliced through any  
enemy they touched. The man cut a very bloody path through the alien  
grunts.  
  
***  
  
Ichiro Kaneda almost drooled at the violence in the fight. These  
pictures would be worth a fortune! However, he didn't know that he had  
accidentally managed to set his transmitter on a wide broadcast  
frequency meaning that a lot of people were watching this. He could  
literally kiss those exclusive rights bye-bye.  
  
***  
  
The alien leader chose this moment to interfere shooting fireballs into  
the melee, not caring if some of his underlings got killed. Some of the  
aliens armed with firearms followed their leaders example and started  
bombarding the area with ranged attacks. The resulting explosion left a  
lot of dead grunts and the man was thrown back into a store.  
  
Satisfied that this nuisance was taken care of the alien leader ordered  
his remaining soldiers to form up and attack the Senshi. Of course being  
a standard generic bad guy he didn't bother to check if the armored man  
really was finished off. Big mistake.  
  
"Oh well. No pain, no gain."  
  
Noone could believe their eyes as the armored man walked out of the  
ruined store seemingly unharmed, although the right breastplate had some  
cracks in it.  
  
By now even the most stupid grunts had realized that discretion was the  
better part of valor and the alien leader was the only one left.  
  
"Hold it you unworthy worm" the alien screamed trying to look  
intimidating, something that's very hard to do when you look like a  
kawaii version of ET. He tapped a communicator and spoke a few words in  
it and a big ship de-cloaked in the sky. "I was going to take over this  
planet and this city was going to be the new capital of my Imperium.  
However your intervention made me reconsider. This city will be made as  
an example to all those who think they can oppose me. I just ordered a  
bombardment from my ship that will utterly obliterate this city,  
starting with you!"  
  
As the alien finished dozens of red beams shot out from the ship. The  
armored man calmly held out his palm and a red force field, as wide as  
the street, became visible that seemed to ripple like water when the  
beams hit it. The bombardment continued for a minute but as the smoke  
cleared it became painfully obvious the red force field had deflected  
every shot it took.  
  
The alien could only stammer in horror: "How... why... it's not  
possible..."  
  
"Nice ship, could probably stand up to Voyager. Oh well, it has to go."  
the armored man said with a shrug. Again the shoulder gun was charging  
but this time the energy had a fiery orange shine instead of blue and it  
made a high-pitched sound.  
  
After 15 seconds of charging, the gun let loose a wide beam that hit the  
spaceship in the side. At first nothing seemed to happen but after a few  
seconds the shields almost visibly caved in and the ship disintegrated  
without as much as an explosion.  
  
By now the alien leader was a blabbering mess and his eyes got quite  
wide when he saw the strange man approaching. Backpedaling up against a  
wall he stuttered out: "W-who a-are you? WHAT are you?"  
  
The man removed his breathing mask and visor and smiled evilly.  
  
"Now since corny speeches seems to be the norm around here, let's give  
it a try:  
  
I am Alpha and Omega  
The beginning and the end  
Nothing and everything  
  
I'm neither bad nor good  
Black nor white  
Dead nor alive  
  
I... am... Wildman."  
  
With that a new gun appeared in his hand and promptly ended the alien's  
life with a bullet to the head.  
  
***  
  
To say that Nabiki was stunned was like saying that the pope has a funny  
hat (Sorry all you Catholics out there, just had to put it in there  
^__^). If anyone had seen her in that moment, they would have been  
equally stunned since she made no pretense to keep her Ice Queen  
appearance. She had gotten a good view of the armored man when he took  
of his mask and visor. Now that just had to be Ranma, it just had to be.  
Only his eyes were a different color and his hair was not done in a  
pigtail. And were did he get that get-up from? Too many questions, but  
Nabiki was still positive of one thing: Ranma was back.  
  
*** - - - ***  
  
Finally! The first chapter of my first story finished and uploaded.   
The second chapter is not far from completed either. Comments are  
welcomed, hell I'll even welcome flames at this point. I'm very well  
aware of that the first chapter has similarities to Private Bet #10 by   
Shade but I'm not overly concerned with that since this story will be   
take a different heading in the coming chapters. By far the biggest   
difference is that this story will be rather dark.   
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will  
also feature my fics:  
  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	2. The Beginning and the End

Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma ½ has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma ½  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese "  
*Thoughts*  
Mind meld  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
Chapter 2: The beginning and the end  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
"Well that was fun." The man who had introduced himself as Wildman  
deadpanned. He looked down on himself and sighed. "Damn, the fools got  
lucky." His weapons and bulky armour disappeared while he started  
fingering the cracks in his right breastplate as if measuring how badly  
damaged it were. He stopped and pressed a button on his wrist and with a  
loud hiss and a release of steam the breastplate came loose. Wildman  
grabbed the plate and calmly dropped it to the ground while a new one  
materialized out of thin air. The dropped plate made a loud *Thump*  
against the concrete, indicating that it was quite heavy.  
  
Sailor Pluto did not like this person. He had used energy that she  
interpreted as evil. Secondly, being the Guardian of Time also made her  
sensitive to Space-Time anomalies. And boy, did she feel a space-time  
anomaly when this guy showed up. His somewhat fearsome appearance and  
his cold-blooded and almost mechanical slaughter of the enemy only  
further convinced her that this guy was not exactly the nicest person to  
have around. She quickly checked the Time Gate and found to her surprise  
that it was working again. She almost gasped out loud, when she checked  
the time stream. The most common possibility was that Earth was  
destroyed. The second possibility did have a healthy Earth, but no  
Crystal Tokyo.  
  
While Wildman changed the damaged armour, the Sailor Senshi, with the  
exception of Pluto had watched with stunned expressions. Sailor Pluto  
took a step forward, certain that the other Senshi would follow her  
lead, when she attacked. Sailor Mercury snapped out of her daze when she  
saw what Pluto was planning.  
  
"Pluto, stop!" She cried out.  
  
All the Senshi stopped and looked at her. Pluto raised an eyebrow. "And  
why not, Mercury? This... person is a huge threat to the timeline. I  
think you of all people would agree with me on that."  
  
"Yeah, but he asked me to stop you from attacking him."  
  
"Oh? And when did you talk to him?"  
  
"Uhm... well... he hacked the Mercury computer..." Mercury answered  
looking somewhat ashamed.  
  
"Yup I sure did, but that was only because it was the closest  
connection. I'm sorry about it though."  
  
Now all the Senshi turned to Wildman. He looked at them with a wild grin  
and a mischievous glint in his eyes.  
  
"You!" Pluto hissed.  
  
"Satan is that you?" Wildman replied in mock surprise.  
  
"Don't think we will be fooled by your appearance, negaverse scum!"  
  
"Oh! Venom is dripping from you when you speak! Please, let me take a  
sample to study!"  
  
Pluto didn't really now how to respond to that except with brutal force.  
"Dead Scream." She whispered.  
  
Wildman merely sidestepped the attack, while changing his expression  
from playful to deadly serious. "Hmph, what's your problem, really?  
Maybe it's that time of the month? It's not like I'm planning to stay  
long, I'll probably leave this pathetic piece of dirt you call a planet  
to find someplace that's a little more friendly. Maybe hell or  
something. Besides didn't you watch me 5 minutes ago? I took out an  
entire attack force of hostile aliens and a spaceship by myself,  
something I doubt that you could do. Believe me when I say this: You  
DON'T want to mess with me."  
  
Pluto however didn't really listen to him, she was preoccupied being  
pissed off and she prepared another attack. Wildman only shook his head  
before counterattacking. Just as Pluto was about to launch a second dead  
scream, she suddenly found Wildman in front of her with his fist planted  
in her gut. "Impossible..." was Pluto's last thought before  
unconsciousness claimed her.  
  
The other Senshi had not had time to react to Wildman's attack as he  
seemingly disappeared only to reappear in front of Pluto. He quickly  
held up a hand in a gesture of peace. "You go back to your headquarter  
or whatever you call and I'll drop by with Pluto in an hour."  
  
"What are you going to do to her?" Sailor Moon asked with a worried  
expression while the other senshi prepared to attack in a desperate  
attempt of retaliation and hopefully rescue Pluto, though most of them  
still doubted their ability to actually defeat this foe.  
  
"I'm going to her 'home' and hopefully talk some sense into her.  
Whatever you may think now, you must believe me when I say that I'm not  
your enemy." As if sensing the next question he continued "And if you  
think that my attack on Pluto proves otherwise, think again. Remember,  
SHE attacked ME first." He carefully picked up Pluto in his arms and a  
portal opened beside him. "Oh, by the way, I know quite well where your  
'headquarters' is so don't worry about that" He stepped into the portal  
with Pluto and vanished. The Senshi just stood there for a minute trying  
in their own way to figure out what had truly happened and how to react  
to it. The sounds of approaching police, ambulance and fire-vehicles  
however didn't let them think for long.  
  
"Ok, let's go to our headquarters." Sailor Moon exclaimed.  
  
"Hey! Since when did I allow you to call my home a headquarters?" Rei  
protested.  
  
"Oh quiet Mars."  
  
***  
  
It took only 15 minutes to return to the Hikawa Shrine. Unfortunately  
the following 40 minutes was not exactly used in an efficient manner.  
Usagi complained about nothing to eat while reading Rei's mangas. Rei  
ranted about how they should kill this new enemy. Of course she also  
yelled quite at Usagi for reading her manga and not acting as a leader.  
Minako and Makoto were naturally worried about Setsuna, but they were  
mostly preoccupied with dreams of this new and handsome guy. Makoto  
obviously stated that Wildman looked just like her old boyfriend. Ami  
didn't say much except for answering questions on Wildman's capabilities  
while trying to figure out just how he had connected and hacked the  
Mercury Computer. Haruka and Michiru tried to form some type of battle  
plan but that was a lost cause with all the chaos going on around them.  
Hotaru just sat silent and prayed that Setsuna was all right. The moon  
cats didn't understand much of all the commotion except that a new enemy  
had supposedly kidnapped Setsuna.  
  
Somehow in the midst of this chaos they finally agreed on a sort of  
battle plan. Five minutes before the allotted time ran out they would  
hide themselves around the shrine and the shrine grounds just in case  
this Wildman had lied to them about not being their enemy.  
  
***  
  
A portal shimmered into existence in the middle of the shrine grounds  
and a man recognizable as Wildman stepped out. He quickly glanced around  
and held out a hand to the portal. A slender hand reached out and took  
the offered hand and Pluto stepped out.  
  
"See? My way isn't so bad." Wildman cheerfully proclaimed.  
  
Pluto only glared at Wildman.  
  
"C'mon, you've gotta loosen up. It can't be healthy for you using that  
glare all the time. Besides you'll get wrinkles."  
  
Pluto intensified her glare.  
  
"Oh well, suit yourself. Now what do we have here..." He smirked as he  
looked around again. "Heh, one might think that you've set up an ambush.  
Now come out in the open." He ordered.  
  
No answer came.  
  
Wildman rolled his eyes "Please, do you really want me to embarrass you  
further by actually having to drag each of you out of hiding?" He  
pointed to a bush "There's Sailor Mars." A stone "Sailor Saturn." A tree  
"Sailor Venus. I can tell where more of you are but where's the point in  
that? Now come out!"  
  
Now he got a reaction as the Senshi slowly came out of their respective  
hiding places and gathered on the yard looking somewhat dumb since they  
couldn't figure out just how he had known where they had hid.  
  
"My, aren't you girls cute." Wildman commented with a smile.  
  
Most of the girls blushed at that comment but Mars predictably blowed up  
in fury instead. "What are you, a pervert?"  
  
Wildman calmly replied with a shrug. "Been there, done that."  
  
That wasn't exactly the response she was expecting but Mars didn't let  
such a small thing stop her. "What have you done to Pluto? I swear if  
you have harmed her I'll kill you!"  
  
"Other than doing a revised version of a Vulcan mind meld, she's just  
fine. Besides you shouldn't be angry all the time. It will make you  
dumber by killing your brain cells."  
  
The other senshi snickered at this comment and only made Mars angrier.  
However before she could retort, Pluto cut her off. "Please Mars, calm  
down, I'm perfectly fine. Everything will be explained. Let's go into  
the shrine."  
  
Satisfied with the answer, Mars and the rest of the senshi went into the  
shrine with Wildman and Pluto following behind them.  
  
***  
  
When they entered the shrine, Wildman told them to drop the disguises.   
It took a little convincing but when he told them that he could   
recognize them by their aura, as demonstrated earlier, they finally   
agreed and introduced their real life personas.  
  
As soon as everyone had settled down, Wildman spoke up. "I suppose you  
want to know who and what I am." He paused to gauge their reactions.  
Satisfied that he had their attention he continued. "My name is Wildman,  
Ranma Wildman. Well actually Ranma is the only name I can truly claim  
for myself. Some two millennia ago I was somehow transported to another  
dimension" Now this truly captured their attention. "I don't know why or  
how it happened but when I woke up I found myself in the care of a race  
called the Eldar. The Eldar are tall and lithe with pointy ears. They  
are truly beautiful to behold. They are also proud and a bit arrogant.  
If you could imagine an elf then you can imagine an Eldar except that  
the Eldar are highly advanced."  
  
He smiled at the memory. "Now the Eldar are on the verge of extinction  
due to a very tragic moment in their history and they struggle to  
survive, especially against humans, which incidentally are viewed as  
nothing more than filthy barbarians or Mon-Keigh as the Eldar prefer to  
call humans. Now imagine me, a 'lowly' Mon-Keigh, coming from nowhere  
into the very core of their most holy sanctum. To say that they were  
upset is an understatement. Something happened though. I don't have any  
memories of this or my time before my arrival at the Eldar craftworld  
but from what I've been told I tried to escape from the upset Eldar.  
  
"What is a craftworld?" Ami interjected.  
  
"A craftworld is basically a self-contained spaceship the size of a  
small planet. As for the reason why the Eldar live on these craftworlds,  
I could tell you but not right now. Now back to the story. Somehow when  
I tried to make my escape I accidentally came upon a truly ancient  
artefact. An artefact that held an equally ancient prophecy, I might  
add. This artefact attached itself to me and changed me a bit." It was  
rather obvious that he wasn't telling everything about the artefact.  
  
"The Eldar were at a loss as how to deal with me. I fulfilled the  
prophecy but I still was a Mon-Keigh. A civil war almost broke out  
because of my presence. In the end they allowed me to live and I was  
slowly allowed to gain a place in the Eldar society. I became a warrior  
and helped the Eldar survive. Ultimately I gained the trust of all  
Eldar, although it took almost a thousand years, and they truly believed  
that I was the person the prophecy had spoken of. However, disaster  
struck."  
  
He took a shuddering breath before he continued. "My wife and daughter  
became victims of a dark and horrible god called Slaanesh. Slaanesh was  
the Chaos god of perverse pleasure and the nemesis of the Eldar race.  
When I found my wife and daughter, my mind went blank. A year later I  
woke up on an Eldar spaceship carrying me back to the craftworld. From  
what I've been told, I went into a berserk rage that ended with the  
destruction of Slaanesh. In the aftermath two other Chaos gods Khorne,  
the Chaos god of war, and Tzeentch, the Chaos god of magic, disappeared  
when they battled to claim the former domains of Slaanesh."  
  
"I on the other hand was a total wreck. I hadn't had time to grieve my  
family and to me, the almost complete victory over the Chaos gods, was a  
poor consolation. However I got a second chance. I was somehow  
transported to yet another dimension and from there the shifts only  
became more and more frequent. A thousand years has passed since I last  
saw an Eldar and here I am now. The next shift will probably occur in a  
year or two and then I'll no longer be a problem to you. Now, can you  
believe me when I yet again state that I'm not your enemy?"  
  
The senshi looked at each other trying to decide what to do. He seemed  
sincere and his story was really to complex for just a fabrication.  
Coming to a silent conclusion Usagi spoke up for all the Senshi "Ok, we  
trust you... for now."  
  
"Are you sure that is wise, Usagi" Luna frowned at her. "For all we  
know, he could be some kind of infiltrator."  
  
"Oh shut up Luna! You're just being paranoid. Besides you weren't there  
at the fight. You should have seen his weapons. They are so advanced  
that he could probably destroy the moon." She said jokingly.  
  
"Actually they can." Ranma answered truthfully.  
  
All the Senshi turned and glared at him.  
  
Ranma couldn't help sweat dropping under the combined glare of nine  
girls and two talking cats and understandably he fidgeted somewhat when  
he spoke "Uhm, well you see... well, you know the shoulder gun I fired  
during the fight?" All the senshi nodded while continuing their unified  
glare. "Well depending on what power source I use, I could potentially  
destroy this entire solar system. I normally use water, antimatter or  
even protoculture but I have a few canisters loaded with Omega  
particles."  
  
Ami gasped and paled visibly when he mentioned this. The other Senshi  
couldn't help but to notice. "Ami? Could you please explain what this  
stuff does?" Usagi asked with worry in her voice. Ami took a few breaths  
to calm herself before she spoke up. "I only know the theory but an  
omega particle is supposedly the most complex particle that exist. And  
since the more complex a particle gets, the more energy it contains, the  
most complex one should theoretically hold unimaginable amounts energy."  
  
"Couldn't be more right." Ranma answered. "I can understand your worry,  
believe me, I know first hand what even one Omega particle can do, so I  
constantly worry about it myself. Each canister is carefully stored in a  
separate parallel dimension to myself, which should prevent any large-  
scale destruction of the dimension I reside in although I can't be  
totally sure of that. Omega particles are way to unstable and too rare  
to experiment on."  
  
"Well I forbid you from EVER using them!" Usagi almost yelled. Satisfied  
that she had made her point clear, she narrowed her eyes in suspicion.  
"You said you did something to Setsuna... If you hurt her..." She left  
the threat hanging.  
  
"Relax, I only did a revised Vulcan mind meld. It does hurt when it's  
applied, but Setsuna was unconscious when I performed it so she didn't  
feel a thing, except maybe a headache in an hour or two."  
  
"Thanks for the warning." Setsuna replied dryly.  
  
"And exactly why did you do this mind thingy, and what does it do?"  
Usagi asked.  
  
"My version of it allows for a constant link between two minds, in this  
case mine and Setsuna's. Thanks to it, I can sense what Setsuna is  
currently thinking of and vice versa." He turned to Setsuna with a smirk  
on his face. "What am I thinking Setsuna?" Setsuna blushed and replied  
with "Pervert." Ranma only chuckled and turned back to the others. "This  
was the only way I could convince her not to constantly attack me at  
first sight, since she now can feel if I am planning anything against  
you. Other than that I also made a deal to help you out."  
  
"Is this true?" Usagi asked Setsuna.  
  
Setsuna sighed. "Yes, as much as I would like to see him dead or worse I  
cannot find any evil intentions in him."  
  
"Yeah I love you too." Ranma deadpanned.  
  
Setsuna levelled a truly horrifying glare at Ranma, while the other  
Senshi snickered. However Setsuna's glare turned into an evil grin as  
she formed a plan to get him back. She stood up and walked over to  
Artemis and picked him up.  
  
"Hey! What gives?" Artemis yelled undignified.  
  
"Oh nothing, right Ranma?" Setsuna said while grinning like a madman.  
  
Ranma started to fidget where he sat. "Uhm, please stop that."  
  
"Oh come on. Don't tell me the big bad dimension traveller got a problem  
with a little kitty?" Setsuna said as if she talked to a small child.  
She slowly stepped closer to Ranma, and he visibly got more and more  
nervous as she came closer.  
  
"Yeah, the big bad dimension traveller with really nifty guns and cool  
equipment is afraid of cats, happy now? I've had a phobia for cats for  
as long as I can remember, though I'm fine as long as they don't touch  
me. Now put the damn thing away! No offence, of course."  
  
"None taken..." Both Luna and Artemis answered while the Senshi rolled  
around on the floor laughing.  
  
Ranma cleared his throat to get their attention "Now as I was saying  
earlier, before someone..." Now it was Ranma that levelled a glare.  
Setsuna just looked extremely smug and ignored him. The other Senshi  
just snickered some more. "...decided to play a practical joke on me, I  
had to make a deal with Setsuna. The deal consists of three parts. First  
and foremost I promise to protect this planet to the best of my  
abilities. Secondly I will do what I can to ensure Crystal Tokyo. Third  
and last, I will train you to be better fighters."  
  
Noticing some of scowls he got from some of the Senshi he continued  
before they could comment. "Yeah some of you might think your good  
fighters but you are not even beginners compared to most of my friends.  
I have two millennia of experience, spread over hundreds of dimensions,  
in almost every possible field of fighting, from one-on-one to spaceship  
battles involving thousands of craft. When it comes to fighting there's  
not really anyone better than me." He seemed strangely sad when he said  
this.  
  
Ranma stood up and stretched. "Well I think that is enough for today,  
don't you agree?"  
  
Usagi was quick to agree, but the others especially Ami still had a  
bunch of questions. Not that it helped that they all started asking  
questions at the same time.  
  
Ranma only held up his hand to stop them. "No, I won't answer any more  
questions right now. Tell you what, I'll be back in a week to start your  
training, and if time allows it, I'll be more than happy to answer any  
questions and maybe even tell a story or two about my travels."  
  
"Where are you going then?" Ami asked.  
  
"I'm gonna check out this planet and see if there's anything I've missed  
with my preliminary scans. It is always good to 'know the map' so to  
speak, especially if you're a dimension traveller. Besides, I reckon  
that my somewhat explosive entry onto this planet has gotten the  
attention of more than one secret agency and possibly some evil villains  
and/or people bent on world domination."  
  
Rei couldn't understand his attitude; to her it was like he was bragging  
about how high and mighty he was. "Yeah, right 'Mister Important'. Like  
that's gonna happen."  
  
Ranma only rolled his eyes; he had already learned not to expect any  
less from Rei. "It has happened before, and I'm quite sure it will  
happen again. It wouldn't surprise me if there already was some sort of  
agency charged with the task of monitoring super powered persons such as  
your little group."  
  
Now this shut up Rei, and all the others nervously started looking  
around as if they were expecting to find anyone spying on them. 'Heh,  
talk about being paranoid.' Ranma smiled to himself. 'Still, I could  
probably pull a prank or two.'  
  
Oh no you don't!'  
  
The unexpected voice in his head startled Ranma. Huh? Setsuna was that  
you?   
  
Setsuna's almost permanent glare at Ranma slowly turned into a frown as  
she turned to look at him. What are you doing?   
  
I could ask you the same thing. To me it seems that we can somehow  
communicate through each other's mind but it should not be possible. The  
mind meld should only allow pictures to go through. Strange...  
  
Setsuna's frown deepened. Are you sure it's safe?   
  
Well I can't think of any reason for it to be unsafe. The original  
Vulcan mind meld worked more like this so I don't think it's any  
problem. However I will look into it just in case.   
  
Setsuna let out a sigh of relief. Ok then, so where are you going now?  
  
  
I told you that already, or haven't you been paying attention? He  
almost scolded her.  
  
Yeah, you did but you didn't say anything about where or how you'll be  
living.   
  
So you do care for me! Ranma replied with a grin.  
  
Setsuna only shook her head and returned glaring at him.  
  
He chuckled in response Right, should have known better. I'll be  
leaving now anyway.   
  
Can one hope for the chance of you not returning? Setsuna asked in a  
hopeful tone.  
  
Nope.   
  
Damn...  
  
They both turned to let the others know they were leaving only to find  
themselves being stared at.  
  
Uhm, I wonder if we looked strange when we talked to each other...   
  
That would be my first guess.   
  
"Uhm, I think I'll leave now." Ranma said while almost running out of  
the shrine. Setsuna was not far behind; she didn't want to answer any  
questions, as she was sure the others would jump to conclusions. She  
shivered at that thought, there was no way she would let them believe  
there was something going on between her and Ranma, other than plans for  
killing him.  
  
"What was that all about?" Minako asked no one in particular.  
  
"Beats me" Usagi answered for all of them.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki had a headache. As soon as she saw the news clip of Ranma, she  
had worked hard to gather everyone that would be interested in Ranma's  
return. She knew that if anyone of the usual loons in Nerima had seen  
the news, they would be itching to find Ranma. That was in it self not  
so bad, but anything concerning Ranma would invariably mean that the  
Tendo Dojo would see some action.  
  
Nabiki was also concerned about more riots. If the loon squad got over  
to Juuban, it too might get seriously damaged, just like what happened  
in Nerima. The government had employed her, along with several other  
people in Nerima to prevent more outbreaks of rioting. It had sounded  
like a good idea at the time since the pay was good, but right now  
Nabiki wished she hadn't went along it.  
  
As she came down from the upper floor and heard all the shouts,  
commotion and bickering coming from the living room, she wished she had  
at least two boxes of Aspirin available. She walked up to the entrance  
and sighed at the chaos.  
  
Soun was in another one of his crying fits, ranting about how the  
schools never could be joined. Genma was cursing and muttering about how  
useless Ranma was. Kuno tried glomping Akane, just as Mousse tried  
glomping Shampoo. Both only got violence in return for their shows of  
affection. Ukyo and Kodachi tried to stare each other to death. The only  
calm people were Kasumi (Nothing strange with that.), Nodoka, Cologne  
and Happosai (Now that was REALLY strange). Ryoga was the only one that  
Nabiki had not been able to reach, but considering his infamous sense of  
direction, that wasn't a surprise.  
  
She was rather proud that she had been able to gather everyone with such  
short notice (With the exception of Ryoga of course.), and without them  
knowing what had transpired over in Juuban. When she had seen the news  
clip she prayed that no one important had seen the news at the same time  
as her. Apparently her prayer had been answered, since they were all  
here and accounted for.  
  
Nabiki cleared her throat to get everybody's attention. Nothing  
happened. She tried again and yet again failed to clear the chaos. She  
rubbed her temples in irritation.  
  
"Will you just SHUT UP!" She yelled. Now that got their attention.  
Everyone turned to watch her.  
  
She took a deep breath before she continued. "As you might have guessed,  
I have information concerning the whereabouts of Ranma." She continued  
before they had a chance to start the chaos again. "However before I  
start I want you to know that if you don't shut up and listen to what I  
have to say, I'll charge each one of you 100 000 yen as punishment. As  
for the Kunos, the amount is 1 million yen."  
  
Everyone present, even the half-insane Kunos, knew that Nabiki wouldn't  
hesitate carrying out a threat involving money so they wisely chose to  
shut up.  
  
Nabiki glanced at her watch. 18:00 "It's time." She said while switching  
on the TV and flipping to the right channel.  
  
"Good afternoon." A male newsreader announced. "Today's top story is the  
latest attack in the Juuban district of Tokyo. At 15:00 a huge unknown  
force attacked downtown Juuban in what eyewitnesses describes as a  
takeover attempt. While the famous Sailor Senshi was present to counter  
the attack, a new person that totally decimated the attackers  
interrupted. This is footage taken from the actual scene."  
  
The screen changed to give a full view of the battle that had transpired  
three hours earlier. Nabiki was still amazed by the ferocity of Ranma's  
attack, despite having already seen this footage. The others present  
didn't even utter a sound.  
  
The battle ended and was replaced by interviews of eyewitnesses and  
speculations of who this mystery man was and why the Sailor Senshi  
seemed to have a problem with this new person. The news announcer  
finished with relating government's usual denial of all knowledge or  
involvement.  
  
Nabiki choose that moment to shut off the TV. She turned to face the  
assembled group. "Now you know."  
  
Nobody spoke for several minutes. Ukyo was the first to break the  
silence. "Why did he call himself Wildman?"  
  
"How should I know that?" Nabiki answered in a tired voice. "He was gone  
for a week. For all we know he could have gone to hell and heaven and  
conquered both."  
  
Kuno decided to share his 'wisdom'. "So the cur has ties to hell and  
defiled heaven. I must smite him!" He rose from his place only to be  
smashed by one of Shampoo's Bonbori.  
  
"Thanks for shutting him up." Nabiki said to Shampoo.  
  
Shampoo only grinned. "Stupid stick-boy need lesson."  
  
"Look, it's entirely possible that he has lost his memories." Nabiki  
continued. "There are too many questions that need to be answered, so I  
strongly suggest that not one of you decides to find Ranma. At least not  
until I've been able to gather more info. In fact, I'll take it upon  
myself to bring him here. Is that ok with you?"  
  
Most people nodded to that. Genma however decided to do a Kuno. "No! We  
must find him a bring him over now so the schools can be joined."  
  
"Yes, without him the schools are doomed!" Soun followed Genma's lead.  
  
"Shut up you two." Happousai interjected.  
  
"But Master..." Soun started but he quickly shut up when Happousai  
glared at him  
  
"Earlier today I felt a strong aura at the same location that the news  
said. I dismissed it since Juuban is famous for strange occurrences, but  
now that I think back to it, it couldn't have been anyone else than  
Ranma. However seeing him on TV only confirms what I felt earlier;  
something is not right with the boy. If you bring in him in now, I have  
no idea what will happen."  
  
"As much as I hate to admit it, I have to agree with him." Now everyone  
turned to Cologne. "I too dismissed the aura I felt from Juuban, since  
it was so... wrong. I'm actually inclined to say that the aura was  
evil."  
  
"Evil?!" Ukyo exclaimed. "C'mon this is Ran-chan we are talking about.  
He can't be evil."  
  
Cologne held up a hand to stop any other comments. "I'm not saying that  
he is evil, merely that the aura had traces of what could be considered  
as evil. For all we know, he might be possessed or he may have learned a  
way to harness evil energy."  
  
"So the foul sorcerer shows his true colours. I must smit..." Kuno  
didn't get any further since he yet again was smashed by Shampoo.  
  
Nabiki sighed. "Now, can we agree that I'm in charge of bringing Ranma  
here? Unless he decides to visit us, no one is allowed to seek him out,  
understood? And that goes for you too Kuno-baby."  
  
Everyone, even Kuno and Kodachi, agreed that Nabiki was to find Ranma.  
Quickly after that they started bickering again. Nabiki rubbed her  
temples. She really wished she had a box or two of aspirin.  
  
End Chapter Two  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
This is supposed to be a somewhat dark story. Doesn't seem like it,  
right? Don't worry, Ranma's apparent light-hearted attitude will be  
explained later. I've already hinted some of Ranma's dark past and it  
should be apparent that his story isn't pretty. The next chapter will   
see him dealing with the Nerima Wrecking Crew. He will not stand and   
take any shit from them that's for sure.  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will  
also feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	3. Nothing and Everything, part 1

Completed: 2002-07-26  
  
Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma 1/2 has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma 1/2  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese"  
*Thoughts*  
Mind meld  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
  
Chapter 3: Nothing and Everything  
  
Part 1  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
The next morning, Ranma stepped out of a transporter portal. He was clad  
in a red shirt and black jeans, black sunglasses covering his eyes. Just  
as planned he had arrived at the UN building in New York (I think). One  
of the biggest constants in his life was strangely enough the very  
building he was gazing upon. For some reason it could be found in almost  
any dimension featuring Earth. He walked a little closer, curious about  
all the police surrounding the building. He tuned in to the police COM  
channels, listening for a moment. His mouth turned into a vicious grin,  
and he cracked his knuckles. This day had barely started and it already  
showed promise.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki stood at the gates of Furinkan high school shaking her head at  
the spectacle before her. When Ranma disappeared, the idiot squad  
quickly restarted assaulting Akane. Despite the fact that he had  
returned, they still tried to best her, hence the name. Normally she  
would have been happy about this turn of events, but ever since she  
signed up as a riot suppresser, she had to spend a lot of time, effort  
and money to control situations like this. She sighed as she saw Akane  
pound the last of the idiots. This day had barely started and she  
already had a headache.  
  
***  
  
Some hours later, Ranma walked out of the UN building looking incredibly  
pleased with himself. The meeting went as planned, that is a lot of  
protesting from narrow-minded politicians and a lot of convincing from  
his side. All in all, his suggestions had been approved of and he was  
satisfied with the compromises made. He also had had the opportunity to  
engage in some more violent 'discussions' before the meeting, concerning  
some terrorists, about terrorism. *A great warm up. * He thought with a  
grin. He checked his chronometer and decided to call it a day. *I'll  
have to prepare my briefing for tomorrow...*  
  
***  
  
The bell rang and every student filed out of the classrooms. School was  
over for the day and most students hurried to get home. Nabiki was no  
exception. She had already arranged for her cronies to look out for  
Ranma. The computer geeks were instructed to watch the net for any scrap  
of information they could possibly get and any and all contacts to the  
media, even the remote ones, were closely monitored. Already, some  
information had surfaced, and she was anxious to confirm them herself.  
It would probably take the entire night and cost quite a bit of money.  
She swore she was going to find Ranma and pay him back for all the  
trouble he caused her. Or so she told herself.  
  
***  
  
Early next morning Ranma stepped out of another glimmering portal. He  
stood before an ugly building that looked like it had been ruined  
several times, if the patchwork repairs were any indication. He knew  
better to trust appearances though. The people working in the building  
had experience and knowledge and would most certainly be more than  
capable of handling the new assignment. *Time to brief the squad* He  
thought with a sentimental smile.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki did not want to leave her bed. Almost the entire night had been  
spent finding clues to Ranma's whereabouts and confirming them since  
most sightings were no more than fakes. Unfortunately she had no solid  
leads, only some rumours. She reluctantly climbed out of the bed when  
she heard Kasumi announcing breakfast. The thought of school did  
brighten her mood a little. Her contacts just might have been lucky and  
gotten some good info.  
  
***  
  
It was late when Ranma activated his return transporter. He idly  
reflected on the day and was very satisfied with the proceedings. The  
newly started UN ETSPP bureau would prove most useful to him just as  
similar organisations had in the past. Briefing the agents was a joy to  
behold, as they were even more organised and experienced then he  
anticipated. He gleefully rubbed his hands together as he thought of the  
coming day. He had always liked travelling...  
  
***  
  
Nabiki looked desperately at the computer screen. She had gotten her  
first solid lead about Ranma, but she still didn't know his location.  
The news continuously reported about the previous day's terrorist attack  
on the UN building. What the news did not report was that Ranma somehow  
got involved in the attack, though it was unclear if he was an aggressor  
or defender, maybe both. She rubbed her temples and turned off her  
computer. No use staying up all night.  
  
***  
Ranma looked intensely at a computer screen depicting earth. All over  
the map, small yellow blips could be found. He had to check every one of  
them. Not that he was complaining, after all he just might find some  
interesting individuals. After a short consideration he decided that  
Tomobiki in Tokyo would make a great starting point.  
  
***  
  
Several hours later  
  
Ranma stepped out of a transporter portal and promptly deactivated it.  
He was almost through for the day and had therefore returned to Japan.  
Only one more stop and he would be finished with his first day. He  
looked around the lush forest surrounding him. *I could get to like it  
here. * He thought as he briefly enjoyed the sight before him. In the  
distance he could see a lake with a house in close proximity. *Odd place  
for a modern house* he thought. Behind it, a long set of stairs could be  
seen that ended in a traditional Japanese shrine.  
  
Ranma looked down at the small computer screen in his hand. Several  
blips inside the house signified auras that had to be investigated. Now  
that he was close, he could get much more accurate readings than he had  
gotten before. The wide planet scan he had made when he arrived was  
useful but did not give much in the way of details. He took a closer  
look at the readings and instantly became intrigued. Only one of the  
blips was human. The other signatures were a mixture of non-humans.  
  
He dismissed the screen and stretched out his senses. The auras of the  
non-humans proved to be very powerful. In fact, if he would ever find  
himself in a situation where he didn't have access to his equipment,  
they just might be able to overpower him. *At least for a moment...*  
Ranma thought wryly.  
  
Suddenly, he felt one of the auras inside the house abruptly  
disappearing. His eyes widened as he recognized the method; the aura's  
owner had placed itself out of phase with normal reality. He quickly  
stood up and looked around. A person phasing in that manner could very  
possibly reappear right next to him. He relaxed as he felt the aura  
return, almost in the exact place as before. Something wasn't right  
though since he could feel one of the other auras expanding as if  
preparing for battle. Very soon, the phasing aura followed and only  
seconds after, a big explosion could be heard throughout the valley.  
Smoke poured out of the house and the residents came out coughing and  
cursing. Well, the cursing really just came from two individuals, both  
females, if the voices were any indication. Ranma smiled and remembered  
Otaru's house on Terratoo. The marionettes living with him could cause  
quite a stir sometimes.  
  
Max Mercury had once told him: The only worthwhile things you can bring  
to a catfight is popcorn and a drink. Ranma was quite tempted to do just  
that and include a camping chair in the package but he refrained from  
that. After all he still had work to do.  
  
He took a short teleport down in the valley. He re-emerged near the edge  
of the forest and watched the scene before him with a bemused  
expression. On one side, a blonde woman and a small girl with long, blue  
ponytails similar to Usagi's haircut looked on with worried expressions.  
Behind them a bit-older-than-middle-aged man stood. There seemed to be  
some sort of special aura around the man that gave the impression of a  
cloak of some sort. Other than that, the man looked like he thoroughly  
enjoyed watching the spectacle.  
  
In the middle of the field, before the house, was the main attraction. A  
boy with a pigtail, looking slightly younger than himself, in appearance  
that is, had somehow become the prize in a tug of war between the two  
women he had heard cursing before. The woman on the boy's right had  
purple hair and somehow managed to look royal and dignified despite  
being in a very undignified situation. The other woman sported a more  
roguish and sexier look and spiky cyan coloured hair. Yet again he was  
reminded how similar this was to Otaru's situation, and he simply  
couldn't contain his chuckle.  
  
Immediately everyone present stopped and looked at him. "Who are you?"  
The sexy woman asked, taking up a clearly threatening posture.  
  
"We will not let you hurt Tenchi-Sama!" The purple-haired one declared  
hotly.  
  
"Just like Bloodberry and Cherry!" Ranma said as he laughed. "Now  
where's Lime when you need her." He said and looked around in an  
exaggerated manner.  
  
"Hey! I know you!" The blonde on the side exclaimed happily. "I saw you  
on TV!"  
  
The boy the women fought over elbowed his way forward. "Yeah, that's  
right. I saw you on the news the other day. You're called Wildman,  
right?"  
  
"Ranma Wildman, at your service, my liege." Ranma said, bowing  
theatrically.  
  
"So you're the guy Washu has been raving about 24/7." The cyan-haired  
woman said.  
  
Ranma froze and paled visibly. A big lump formed in his throat and the  
words didn't want to come out. "Did... you... just say Washu?" Ranma  
managed to stutter out in a whisper.  
  
The cyan-haired woman looked at him as if he was sick or something.  
"Yeah, the little maniac is probably watching this as we speak." She  
snorted.  
  
However Ranma didn't hear anything after 'yeah'. He ran forward and  
grabbed the woman's collar. "WHERE IS SHE?" He screamed in desperation.  
  
The woman waved her hand in front of her face. "Hey what are you trying  
to do? Kill me with your breath? And besides it's not like I'm just  
going to tell you where she is just like that."  
  
"Please... just tell me, ok? It's really important." Ranma pleaded  
silently to the woman as he let her down.  
  
"Get away from Ryoko!" The boy named Tenchi called out from the side.  
  
Ranma didn't react. He continued to stare at the woman although at that  
angle it was impossible for the others to hear or see Ranma's frustrated  
pleading.  
  
Deciding that that enough was enough, the boy withdrew something from  
his clothes. A hiss and a blue light coming from the boy finally got  
Ranma's attention.  
  
"Interesting... " Ranma turned and commented on the glowing energy  
sword. "Looks like a lightsaber, but I feel something else about it..."  
He looked straight into the eyes of the boy. "Tell me, have you any  
knowledge of something called the force?"  
  
The boy looked confused. "Uhm, I don't know what you are talking about."  
  
Ranma only shook his head. "I thought as much." He turned to the house  
and started walking.  
  
"Hey!" 'Ryoko' called out. "You can't leave like that!" Ranma only  
ignored her.  
  
It didn't take long for Ranma to reach the house. He opened the front  
door of the house and went in. *Where would I be if I were Washu...* He  
pondered for himself. *Ah, but of course! * He exclaimed mentally. He  
rummaged a bit through his subspace pockets and found the thing he was  
looking for. A phase-pulse-modulator should do the trick.  
  
Just as he plucked the device out of subspace, the people out in the  
yard caught up with him and stood in the doorway. The two battling women  
and the boy looked almost ready to kill but the older man stopped them.  
"Hold it. I don't think we should interrupt this." He said and pointed  
at Ranma. Ranma was taking out tools and equipment seemingly from  
nowhere and neatly placed them on the table in the living room.  
  
"You youngsters would do well to listen to your elders." Ranma said  
without looking up from what he was doing. "This is delicate and highly  
volatile equipment. Well the equipment is delicate. I am volatile."  
Ranma answered, chuckling at his own joke.  
  
The two women looked almost as if they would explode at the comment, but  
before they could retort a younger voice interrupted.  
  
"What are you doing?" The blue-haired girl asked.  
  
Ranma looked up and smiled. "Oh nothing special. I just figured that the  
best way to find Washu would be to find her sub pocket lab."  
  
"I gather you know Washu quite well then." The old man said.  
  
"Yeah, well, I was the one that originally gave her the idea to use  
subspace pockets." Ranma answered as he tinkered with the device. He  
ignored all the gasps his comment elicited.  
  
"How old are you?!" The boy exclaimed.  
  
Ranma raised an eyebrow. "Does that matter? I am here, and so is  
apparently Washu. And I _will_ find her." He answered forcefully;  
slamming the lid on the device shut and took the cord connected to it in  
his right hand. He lifted it to his right ear and grimaced. "And now,  
the ugly part." He said, plunging the metallic end on the cord deep into  
his skull through a connector behind his ear. Every muscle in his body  
protested at the intrusion, but soon he relaxed and opened his eyes.  
  
"Heh. Just like Washu." He said as he looked around using the software  
provided by the phase-pulse modulator to locate anomalies in reality.  
"Security cameras being out of phase always were a speciality of hers."  
He went to the glass doors of the living room and looked out. "And  
outside as well... Damn she has been busy." He turned around, planning  
to check the entire house, but he saw something that made him freeze up  
like a statue.  
  
Beside the stairs, a girl with spiky red-hair, stood with her arms  
crossed. She was scowling yet she seemed strangely curious as well.  
Ranma couldn't get out a word; he just dumbly stumbled forward, reaching  
out with one arm. He slowly got closer, ignoring the odd stares he got.  
Time seemed to stretch out into eternity but he finally reached her and  
knelt as if paying respect to a deity. He stretched out his arm and  
tenderly touched the girl's cheek. She was younger than he remembered  
but to Ranma that did not matter. For him it was like a dream come true.  
"Washu-chan..." he whispered and enveloped the girl in a hug.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki was ecstatic. One of the computer geeks had found information  
indicating that Ranma's little visit to the UN headquarters led to the  
start of a new world spanning security agency. As she walked down the  
streets of Nerima on the way back to the dojo, she reflected that this  
could be a perfect moment to extort Ranma for some well needed money and  
maybe to get some solid contacts for the future. Anyway, she now had an  
address and she was sure that she now could find Ranma. She never  
noticed the people in black suits following her...  
  
***  
  
Ranma stepped back and let Washu out of his embrace and genuinely smiled  
at her. To him, the world had just become a much brighter place. However  
the look on Washu's face just wasn't right. She looked thoroughly  
confused and a bit flustered as well.  
  
"What's the matter? Don't you recognize me?" Ranma asked in a worried  
tone.  
  
Washu sighed and shook her head. "No, I do not. In fact I can positively  
say that I have never ever met you in my life. What I want to know is  
why you claim to know me." She said with a scowl.  
  
Ranma hesitated. Why didn't she remember him? A cold thought struck him.  
"Uhm, I don't want to sound rude but how old are you?"  
  
"About 20000 years." The redhead replied. "And I think I've aged with  
dignity." She added with a small smile.  
  
His first suspicions proved wrong; He had not arrived too early in her  
life. Well that should have been obvious; earth was barely beyond the  
Stone Age in the dimension he originally met Washu... Wait that was it!  
  
"Just great." He growled. "When I finally meet someone I've met during  
my travels, she proves to be this dimension's counterpart. Just fucking  
GREAT!" He almost screamed. His shoulders slumped and he continued in a  
depressed tone. "Damn, I would just cry at the injustice of it all."  
  
"Then why don't you do it?" The cyan-haired woman asked with a smirk.  
  
"Because I can't."  
  
"Sure you can. Or is it unmanly?" She said mockingly.  
  
"No, because I am incapable of crying." Ranma replied irritably.  
  
That stopped the woman cold. The girl with ponytails continued. "What do  
you mean incapable?" She asked in concern.  
  
"Exactly what I said." Ranma smiled sadly. "I cannot cry since my eyes  
are bionic. Actually they came with the brain."  
  
"Hold on now a minute." Washu interjected. She summoned her subspace  
computer. "So you are from another dimension, and have met a counterpart  
of me as well..." She pondered for a moment before her face lit up in a  
huge smile. "That proves two theories of mine!" Two chibi-Washu dolls  
popped up from nowhere in a big fanfare.  
  
"You are the best Washu!"  
  
"Yes, you are the greatest scientific genius in the universe."  
  
"So true!" Washu cackled maniacally.  
  
"Heh. You may not be the Washu I met, but you sure are the same  
nonetheless." Ranma chuckled sadly.  
  
Washu instantly turned serious. "Now back to you. Who exactly are you  
and why are you here?"  
  
Ranma glanced around and looked at the assembled group. "Well you know  
me by my name, but I think we got off on the wrong foot. Why don't we  
sit down and I'll explain..."  
  
***  
  
Nabiki struggled in futility against her captors. She was quickly gagged  
and restrained, then thrown into a black Mercedes. Inside there were  
more black suited men and their mere presence was enough to make Nabiki  
think twice about escape. She idly wondered if she had pissed of any big  
crime lords as the car drove away, tires screeching against the  
pavement.  
  
***  
  
It took almost an hour but introductions had been made and Ranma had  
told them essentially the same story that he told the Sailor scouts.  
  
"Now you know a little bit more about me. Now I want to know about you  
people. Only one person in this house is human and he isn't even in this  
room."  
  
The assembled people looked somewhat surprised at that. "Uhm, how did  
you know that?" The boy asked.  
  
"Simple." Ranma replied as if it were the most natural thing in the  
world. "Humans normally doesn't show up on my aura scanner, and if they  
do, they almost always have a very distinct profile." He pointed at the  
blonde woman. "Also, with the exception of Mihoshi, everyone in this  
room has a quite powerful aura. Of course, Washu's aura is not really  
powerful in that sense, her aura merely indicates an abnormally high  
intelligence." He concluded.  
  
"Please, you just say that." Washu replied, mock blushing at the praise.  
  
  
The old man, Katsuhito, spoke up. "A very interesting story you have  
there, but there are still two large questions unanswered. How did you  
meet the other Washu and why are you here?"  
  
"Never thought anyone would ask." Ranma replied with a wide smile. "I  
met her a couple of years after she had finished her academic studies.  
She never really told me what her background was but it was clear that  
some event had utterly devastated her and left her in a deep depression.  
I myself was much in the same way at the time. I've had my fair share of  
depressions myself and we somehow found each other moping around without  
a clear purpose."  
  
"You mean you met in a bar, trying to drink yourselves to death." Ryoko  
replied with a smirk.  
  
Ranma grinned. "Something like that." He got a somewhat faraway look  
when he continued. "Yes, our first meeting wasn't exactly the stuff of  
legends. In fact, I was determined to put the little brat in her place  
by telling her that my life had been much worse than hers. Of course she  
didn't agree with me and a strange competition formed."  
  
"Who won?" Washu asked.  
  
"We never finished it." Ranma replied with a shrug. "From that point, we  
managed to drag ourselves out of our respective depressions and Washu  
found that science was her true purpose in life. I just followed along  
and helped her out, since I've always had a passing interest in science.  
After all, if I ever wanted to find a way to cross dimensions by my own  
choosing, it would have to be by scientific means."  
  
"It sounds like you were pretty close." The purple-haired woman named  
Ayeka said.  
  
"You could say that." Ranma replied sadly. "I may have gotten a second  
chance after I destroyed Slaanesh but in truth, it has been really hard  
on me."  
  
"What do you mean?" Washu asked concerned.  
  
"Just think about it. I have moved through lots of dimensions,  
consequently not staying very long in most of them. You just don't form  
permanent attachments since it just becomes harder to break them when  
the inevitable switch comes." Ranma answered looking very depressed.  
"Memories and friends are two of the greatest treasures available to me  
and to meet someone I have met in another dimension, was like a dream  
come true to me..." He said in a low tone.  
  
He instantly changed his expression into a more cheerful one. "As for  
why I'm here... Well, I'm working actually. I need information on of all  
you, or I'll have to ask you to leave Earth territory."  
  
"Huh?" Came the collective answer.  
  
"Yesterday, I visited The United Nations headquarter..."  
  
"Yeah I remember the news saying something about the UN-building."  
Tenchi spoke up. "They said some terrorists had attacked and took all  
the UN-delegates hostage. The police somehow managed to convince the  
terrorists to surrender though, so no one got hurt, but I guess that was  
you, huh?" Tenchi asked.  
  
"Almost true but not quite." Ranma answered. "I arrived at the same time  
as the attack so I took up the role as 'negotiator'... The terrorists  
didn't exactly get away unhurt from that little session." He finished,  
looking very satisfied with himself. "Anyway, after that little nuisance  
was taken care of, I spoke at length about the lack of a unified  
government on Earth. If there is one thing I have learned during my  
travels is that a planet can not truly hope to survive in the  
intergalactic community if it is divided like Earth."  
  
"Well that is certainly correct." Washu spoke up. "Earth is almost  
unique in the galaxy, since it has such diversity in cultures and  
therefore an almost ridiculous high number of nations. Also, I've always  
been impressed by the sheer stupidity of most rulers here on earth.  
Though I must admit that the Clinton - Lewinsky affair had a lot of  
comical value."  
  
Ranma looked strangely at Washu for a second, silently trying to tell  
her 'You've got to tell me about that some other time', before  
continuing. "Anyway, what I proposed was some type of organisation that  
would basically act like an embassy, representing Earth to any and all  
non-earth beings, until Earth comes together under one flag."  
  
"And they actually agreed?"  
  
"Well, it took some convincing but when I referred to the infamous  
takeover attempt in Tomobiki, the people opposing my suggestion were  
silenced. After that it was just the small matter of actually setting up  
an organisation."  
  
"Now that is something I would have paid to see." Washu grinned.  
  
"Somehow I do not doubt that for a second." Ranma grinned back.  
"Incidentally, the Japanese government was already in the process of  
setting up a secret agency to monitor super-powered individuals, alien  
beings and supernatural creatures in the Tokyo area, since they for some  
reason always seem to pop up around there. Actually, this supposed  
secret agency was not much of a secret at all, as it was built right on  
top of the old Godzilla monitoring agency. For me it was just a matter  
of moving in, commandeering their equipment and briefing them on the new  
assignment."  
  
"That still doesn't truly explain why you seem hostile against us."  
Ayeka pointed out.  
  
"I was getting to that. Now that the organisation has been started, I've  
been assigned to find, identify and evaluate any non-humans on earth.  
This is very much how a normal nation would act. I doubt that any of  
your nations would let a criminal or something similar within their  
domains and if they did, they would keep the person in question under  
heavy surveillance."  
  
"That is most certainly true." Ayeka answered. "If for instance a  
certain space pirate would try to enter Jurai, she would most definitely  
be chased out." She finished with a smirk.  
  
"Well I don't exactly have to go Jurai, now do I? I mean I wouldn't  
dream of leaving Tenchi." Ryoko answered phasing out and appearing  
beside Tenchi, enveloping him in a hug. "Tenchi dear, why don't we leave  
that old bag and go to a nice vacation spot I know of?" She said  
seductively.  
  
Tenchi was already making warding gestures but it proved to be a futile  
effort as Ayeka predictably blew up. "Get your hands of Tenchi-sama!"  
  
"Oh yeah?" Ryoko answered in a challenging tone. "And who's gonna stop  
me?"  
  
"CEASE THIS INSTANT." Ranma said in a commanding, yet disturbingly  
monotone voice. Both Ayeka and Ryoko Eeped and sat down looking as if  
they had been brought to the brink of death.  
  
"Damn, I love that trick." Ranma laughed. "If I ever meet Death again,  
I'll be sure to thank him." He continued, ignoring the strange stares he  
got. "Now let's get some of that information archived shall we?" He said  
taking out his trusty computer notepad.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki was miserable. After the horrifying experience of being violently  
captured and abducted to god knows where, she was thoroughly questioned  
in a very intimidating manner, just short of being tortured. The  
questions mainly concerned her interest in Ranma but she didn't say  
anything except that she wanted a lawyer. Her silence was broken though  
as her captors used some type of truth serum. The next thirty minutes  
passed in a blur for Nabiki, and she had no recollection of what she did  
or said. After that she was transferred to a prison cell and was told  
that she had to stay until further notice. She was very nervous, despite  
maintaining a mask devoid of emotions and expressions. Where the hell  
did the geek get the information?  
  
***  
  
An hour later Ranma sat on a chair inside Washu's lab looking at all her  
gadgets.  
  
"Well I shouldn't really be surprised." He said despite his wonder at  
some of her inventions. "I met your counterpart when she was only 25  
years old. In 19875 years a lot can, will and has happened in the terms  
of technological advances. One thing has not changed though. Both of you  
are definitely the greatest scientific genius in the universe." He  
smiled at her.  
  
Washu truly blushed this time. "Stop with the flattering already."  
  
"Why should I? I know how much you like to hear it."  
  
"That's true." She answered placing one finger on her chin as if  
thinking hard.  
  
"There's one thing that is bothering me though." Ranma said, narrowing  
his eyes at her. "Why are you in a child's body?"  
  
Washu's cheerful front became visibly strained. "Now that is a secret."  
Ranma began to laugh. "Hey! What's so funny?" She said looking offended.  
  
Ranma laughed for another minute and dried his tears before answering.  
"I was just reminded of a guy I met on my travels that always used  
exactly that phrase... I think you would have liked him." Ranma smiled  
at the memory. "Anyway, your appearance might not be a result of what  
happened during you're academy time, would it?"  
  
Washu's expression darkened considerably. "Look, I don't want to talk  
about it."  
  
"You don't have to." Ranma said seriously. "I always respected my Washu,  
and I will not break that habit now. However it would be nice to see you  
as I remember you... uhm, her... whatever." He sighed and shook his  
head. "Damn, this is hard. We've barely met but to me it's like I never  
even left my Washu when you stand before me."  
  
Washu looked curiously at Ranma. "I sense that you were closer than you  
told earlier."  
  
Ranma sighed again. "Yes, we were truly close. Of course, since I've  
never been able to stay for very long in any one dimension, I never  
pursued a romantic relationship with her, but it was hard sometimes to  
refrain from that. It's strange really; in my 'occupation' you cannot  
allow yourself to become too attached to someone, yet there was  
something special with her. I told her all my secrets, something that no  
one else but her has had the privilege of hearing."  
  
"I guess there must be some emotional wars going on in your mind as we  
speak."  
  
"Heh, you couldn't have said it better. Here I am talking to a  
completely different Washu, a stranger really, someone I haven't decided  
if I can trust yet, and despite that I'm almost pouring my heart out.  
Hell give me an hour or two and you'll get to hear all the nasty stuff  
of my life." He said with a wry smile.  
  
"That might be arranged. Just would follow me." She said with a  
discomforting smile. She grabbed his hands and tried to pull him deeper  
into the lab. Ranma however, did not move from his spot.  
  
"I have to decline. I've got to go back to headquarters and file today's  
findings. Besides you just want to strap me to a table and perform a  
multitude of experiments." He said sarcastically.  
  
"Ah, c'mon don't be that way." She said with a pout. "Can I help it that  
you are the most promising guinea pig that has presented itself in  
months? Besides how did you know I was going to that?"  
  
Ranma's smile turned into a grin. "Elementary my dear Washu. Your  
counterpart was no different."  
  
"Spoilsport." Washu said, crossing her arms.  
  
Ranma couldn't help laughing at that. "Don't worry. I have a feeling  
that you will see me a lot in the future." He said with a genuine smile.  
"Later." He finished before activating a portal and disappearing from  
Washu's lab.  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
How interesting. Washu and Ranma almost being an item? How will that  
affect his 'relationship' with Setsuna and the rest of the Senshi? And  
what are his true motives behind the UN ETSPP bureau? Read Balance of  
Chaos: Nothing and Everything, Part 2, in order to find out.  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will also  
feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	4. Nothing and Everything, part 2

Completed: 2002-07-26  
  
Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma 1/2 has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma 1/2  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese"  
*Thoughts*  
Mind meld  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
  
Chapter 3: Nothing and Everything  
  
Part 2  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
The next morning, Ranma stepped out of a portal just in front of the UN  
ETSPP bureau building. He yawned and stretched, having not gotten much  
sleep that night since he double-checked and archived all the data he  
collected the previous day. As he walked closer he could see some  
people, probably agents by their black clothes, waiting for him.  
  
"Morning." He greeted them somewhat drowsily and handed a disc over to  
one of the agents. "All processed and ready. Load to the scanner and  
you'll have full info of most of Europe and Asia. " The agent just  
nodded and scurried of into the building.  
  
"Agent Wildman, we had a security breach yesterday." One of the  
remaining agents said.  
  
"So? Just deal with it according to procedures." Ranma replied.  
  
"Already done. However there are several complications with this  
particular breach."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"First of all, it concerns information on you."  
  
"Nothing strange with that." Ranma yawned.  
  
"Maybe, not but the higher ups were shaken by it, especially since the  
breach was made by a high school computer student."  
  
Ranma perked up a little. "So he or she is a genius when it comes to  
computers. Great. Hire him or her, ASAP." Ranma said dismissively. The  
agents did not move. "Was there something else?" He inquired somewhat  
irritably.  
  
The agents fidgeted before answering. "Well, we did apprehend the  
ringleader of this..."  
  
"And?"  
  
"Well, she is a high school student of 17 years of age. According the  
background check we made on her, she is not connected to any type of  
organisation. In fact, as far as we've been able to ascertain her  
purpose was only to find you. The guys upstairs don't like arresting an  
under-aged girl.  
  
The agent had Ranma's full attention. "Now that sounds interesting. Just  
doing it to find me? I wonder if she's a fan of mine." He said  
sarcastically. "I'll think I'll have to meet her personally."  
  
***  
  
Nabiki was more than miserable. She wanted food, she wanted water, she  
wanted a shower, but mostly she just wanted a proper bed! The simple  
wooden board attached to the wall worked great sitting on, but not  
sleeping. Nabiki just wanted to get home. Suddenly the door opened and  
her eyes had to adjust against the bright light. "Here she is." She  
could hear a male voice saying from beyond the opening. Someone stepped  
through the doorway and blocked out the light.  
  
"So this is my admirer..." The new person said.  
  
Nabiki's heart skipped a couple of beats. Could it have been? She  
squinted against the light, trying to make out the features of the  
person. Sure enough, it was Ranma, standing with his arms crossed and  
his usual infuriating smirk adorning his face. Something was very  
different though; he had a much harder posture and expression than the  
almost childish innocence she was accustomed to.  
  
"Ranma?" She hesitantly asked.  
  
"Yup, that's me. Now..." He checked a list. "...Nabiki Tendo, just what  
were you thinking, stealing classified information from a UN  
installation?" He narrowed his eyes dangerously at her.  
  
Nabiki blinked. Wasn't he here to get her out? "Ranma? Why are you  
asking me that? Now get me out of here or you'll never hear the end of  
it!"  
  
Ranma only slightly tilted his head and looked at her appraisingly, from  
toe to top. Nabiki felt like she was being stripped naked under his  
scrutinizing gaze. "Listen here girl, I ask the questions here, and I  
expect to get answers." He demanded forcefully.  
  
"What are you trying to do Saotome? Don't pretend that you don't  
remember me."  
  
Ranma flinched. "Tell me why I should remember you." He said in a softer  
tone.  
  
Nabiki stared dumbstruck at him. She had suggested it earlier but could  
she have been so right with a mere guess. "Don't you remember me? Or  
Kasumi, Cologne, Happousai, Ryoga, Ukyo and Shampoo? Not even Akane or  
your father and mother?"  
  
Ranma flinched at every name she mentioned, though he either ignored  
them or he didn't notice. "No, I can positively say that I do not.  
However, I must admit that you have gotten me interested. You claim to  
know me and know who my father and mother are..." He tilted his head in  
the other direction. "Say, you live in Nerima, right?" Nabiki nodded.  
"Well, I was just on my way there, so I'll give you a ride." He said  
with a smile.  
  
"But sir!" A voice came from outside the door. "You cannot do that.  
Before the investigation is finished we can't release her."  
  
Ranma turned and gave the owner of the voice a hard glare. "And that's  
exactly what I'm doing. Finishing the investigation so we can release  
this girl. However I can't do that without bringing her with me. Do you  
got a problem with that?" The offending person did not speak up.  
  
Ranma turned back to Nabiki. "Have you ever teleported?" He asked with a  
grin.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki stepped out of a portal somewhere in Nerima. As soon as she  
touched solid ground, she almost knelt down and kissed the ground. The  
teleportation was _not_ pleasant, and if Ranma's grin was any  
indication, he did it on purpose. She quickly composed herself and they  
both headed in the direction of the dojo. They walked in silence for a  
few minutes until they reached the entrance to the dojo.  
  
Nabiki took a deep breath and decided to break the silence. "Listen...  
If you truly have lost your memory, then I warn you... this might seem a  
bit chaotic to you."  
  
Ranma let out a short laugh. "Chaotic? Listen girl; come back to me when  
you have spent more than half your life on a battlefield. Then we can  
start talking about chaos."  
  
Nabiki didn't like his condescending tone, but she became more and more  
convinced that he really did not remember her or anyone else in Nerima  
for that matter. Still, 'half your life on a battlefield'? He didn't  
look any older than before his disappearance. She shrugged and ignored  
it for the moment. After all, she had to brace for the inevitable chaos  
that was so common for Nerima. She swung the doors to the dojo opened  
and entered, cautiously looking around. She breathed a sigh of relief as  
no one was apparently home. She motioned for Ranma to follow her and  
they both entered the house. Well inside, she told Ranma to sit down  
while she went to gather some evidence of her claim to know Ranma.  
  
In hindsight, she wished she never left him.  
  
As she was rummaging through her drawers, looking for conclusive  
evidence, she heard the doors to the house open. She dropped everything  
she was holding and rushed down the stairs, mentally praying that she by  
some miracle would arrive first to the living room. The miracle never  
came.  
  
"Ranma?" She could hear Nodoka exclaim.  
  
"Foolish boy." Genma added. "Leaving your fiancée like this. Didn't I  
teach you better?"  
  
Soun predictably cried. "Oh, the schools can finally be joined!"  
  
Kasumi didn't utter more than her almost patented: "Oh my!"  
  
"Where have you been, you jerk?" Akane screamed in her usual furious  
tone.  
  
Ranma didn't say anything; he just stood in the middle of the room, with  
his arms crossed, observing the people in front of him.  
  
"Answer me!" Akane screamed further.  
  
Ranma finally spoke up. "I do not know any of you people, and I do not  
want to be a part of whatever you are planning." He turned to Nabiki.  
"You better have some good evidence." He said with a glare.  
  
Nabiki winced, as she knew the reaction Ranma's behaviour would elicit  
from Akane. Sure enough, she turned red with fury, whipped out her  
mallet and charged with deadly intent. Ranma calmly turned, not reacting  
in any way. Just as Akane was about to connect, he somehow caught the  
mallet without moving. Well that was just how it looked. Suddenly he  
just stood there, blocking the mallet's trajectory with his left hand,  
mere centimetres from his skull.  
  
"I do _not_ take kindly to unprovoked assaults." He growled and squeezed  
the mallet. With a crack the entire weapon turned into wooden splinters,  
save for the handle. Akane looked dumbly at it for a moment before  
dismissing it and throwing a punch aimed at Ranma's face. Yet again it  
seemed like Ranma didn't move despite catching Akane's hand. In a fluid  
motion, he threw her backwards, landing straight on top of the living  
room table. It predictably broke but Akane seemed oblivious to this as  
she struggled to regain balance.  
  
"My baby!" Soun exclaimed and cried some more.  
  
"Stop this!" Nabiki yelled, managing to get everyone's attention. "Look  
at you! Acting like some barbarians just because Ranma is back. Besides,  
he doesn't remember us."  
  
"Amnesia?" Genma perked up. "That's easily cured." He said before  
charging straight at Ranma. It should not be needed to note that Genma  
is really, really stupid.  
  
Ranma easily sidestepped the attack, adding a punch to Genma's back as  
he went by. With a splash, Genma landed in the koi pond. "Anyone else?!"  
Ranma challenged with glowing red eyes, taking up a threatening stance.  
No one moved or said anything, not even Akane.  
"Good!" He said, his eyes returning to their normal green hue. A  
dripping noise alerted him to a threat behind him though, and he  
instantly whirled on the spot. "Didn't get eno..." He started but  
promptly cut himself off. Before him a big, sopping wet, panda stood.  
  
Suddenly, he knelt and clutched his head, his entire body spasming  
violently. After a minute, it stopped and he looked up. *The mallet, the  
angel, the katana, the crying man, the panda. * He thought. Everything  
was fitting together. He swallowed despite his dry throat. "Home." He  
whispered.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna stood in the kitchen of Michiru and Haruka's house, trying to  
find something worthwhile to eat as she had spent the last three days  
trying to follow Ranma's movements. She sighed at the futility of it.  
Ranma had proven to be almost impossible to track. The mind-meld  
technique he applied on her enabled her to feel him, but only when he  
was close and she was in normal reality, not at the time gate. Right  
now, she could feel him somewhere in Nerima and she was bothered by the  
disturbing images she got. According to his explanation, the mind-meld  
was only supposed to work by conscious activation and yet right now she  
received more than before. She took a sip from a glass filled with  
juice, reflecting on the actions she actually had tracked. Sure those  
vanishing acts he performed with some kind of portal were strange but  
nothing else he had done was really suspicious and even she had to admit  
that the UN ETSPP bureau was a good idea.  
  
Suddenly she felt an intense pain through the mind-link. She staggered  
and tried to regain her balance, dropping the glass in the process. Her  
thoughts were horribly disorganised, and she struggled to clear a path  
through her turbulent mind. A second later, everything cleared up and  
she could think straight again. *What, was that? * She wondered with a  
wide-eyed expression. Half a minute later, the telephone rang. Setsuna  
hesitated, Haruka and Michiru normally answered the phone, but she had a  
feeling that this phone call was for her. She decided to follow her  
instincts and quickly picked up the phone.  
  
"Moshi, Moshi?" She answered.  
  
"Sorry about this, Sailor Pluto." She heard a voice say. Not that it was  
any doubt of the owner of the voice. Ranma... "But could you contact  
Sailor Mercury and get to the Tendo Dojo in Nerima? Something serious  
came up."  
  
Setsuna frowned. That something serious had happened was obvious but why  
did he request for her and Ami to get to a dojo in Nerima? "Exactly what  
are you trying to do?" She asked suspiciously.  
  
"Well..." He hesitated nervously. "You will not like this. This appears  
to be my home dimension..."  
  
***  
  
Ranma refused to tell anything after the strange phone call he made. He  
just told to wait for two associates of his and then he would explain  
where he had been. Nabiki predictably saw this as chance to make some  
money and in slightly less than an hour, Ukyo, the Kunos, the amazons  
and Happousai had gathered at the dojo. The only response from Ranma for  
this action was a disappointed glare, and that somehow made Nabiki feel  
guilty.  
  
Nabiki, along with the others sat in the dojo waiting for Ranma. She  
cleared her throat. "Listen up." She said getting everyone's attention  
and she gave everyone a harsh glare. "As you all know, Ranma is here  
_but_ as I stated earlier over the phone, you will not do anything  
before he has explained himself. Is that clear?"  
  
"Thanks Nabiki, but somehow I don't think they will abide to that for  
more than five minutes." Ranma's voice came from behind her. She saw the  
other's gasp and she quickly turned around. Her jaw hit the floor.  
Before her Ranma stood in the armour he summoned when he made his grand  
appearance, only this time the breastplates were bulkier, as well as  
more ornate. The right plate had an intricate and flowing design almost  
like some kind of glyph or rune, while the other had two beautiful  
gemstones imbedded in it. He almost looked like some kind of futuristic  
knight, yet he was very intimidating. Nabiki quickly collected herself  
and sat down in her chair.  
  
Ranma crossed his arms, making him look even more intimidating. "I  
gather you have many questions, but be patient and everything will  
become clear. First I want to introduce you to Sailor Pluto and Sailor  
Mercury of the famous Sailor Senshi from Juuban." He ignored the gasps  
as both Pluto and Mercury came into the dojo. However he could not  
ignore a certain person.  
  
"Hotcha!" Happousai cried out and launched himself at Mercury. He didn't  
arrive though as he was snagged in the air by Ranma.  
  
"Touch them and you'll wish I would have killed you instead." Ranma said  
in a disturbingly calm tone, despite making a death threat.  
  
Happousai struggled and managed to get free of Ranma's grip. "Is that  
any way to talk to your master boy?" He said with an annoyed expression.  
His annoyance changed into an evil grin. "But why bother with them when  
I have the grand price before me?" He grabbed a bucket of water from  
somewhere and splashed Ranma.  
  
Only Ranma didn't change. He just stood there with a wide grin, albeit  
dripping with water. The assembled people gasped. The Senshi could only  
look on in confusion though. Genma spoke up. "Son, have you found a  
cure?"  
  
"No, I have not, I have something much better instead." Ranma said still  
grinning, as his entire body shimmered. In a second his armour reformed,  
his hair changed to red and his chest become much bigger. He became a  
she. Another round of gasps followed, this time including the Senshi and  
Happousai's eyes almost bugged out in amazement. Ranma quickly changed  
back into his male form, grinning like a madman. "In fact, until now I  
didn't even know it was a curse."  
  
"Until now? What are you talking about son-in-law?" Cologne inquired.  
  
"Let's take things in the proper order." Ranma said while kicking  
Happousai to the back of the dojo. "Now, as I was saying, this is Sailor  
Mercury and Sailor Pluto. They are here to witness and record what  
happens here tonight. This is because I'm currently an ally with them  
and this will fill them in on some of my background." He sighed and took  
a deep breath before continuing. "Now to the million dollar question.  
Where have I been? The answer to that is not an easy one, I assure you.  
However, I will try to make a long story short, by telling you that I  
have been travelling."  
  
"That must have been some trip." Ukyo noted with some sarcasm.  
  
"You don't know how right you are." Ranma replied looking a bit  
depressed. "I will start at the beginning. For some reason, which I have  
yet to discover, I was transported to another dimension. Other  
dimensions should come as no surprise to some of you, if you remember  
the Nanban Mirror."  
  
Kuno did not know what the Nanban mirror was. "Are you suggesting that  
there are more worlds than this? Surely you must be jesting."  
  
Ranma shook his head. "No Kuno, I am serious. In fact, most scientists  
are certain that there are unlimited dimensions. Questioning that would  
be like questioning the genius of Shakespeare himself."  
  
Kuno settled down and seemed to be in deep thought. The others could  
just look on with stunned expressions. Had Ranma just managed to reach  
Kuno? It seemed impossible, yet the proof was right there in front of  
them.  
  
"My travels did not stop there however." Ranma continued. "For two  
thousand years, I have travelled, against my will, through hundreds of  
dimensions. Until now, I never knew my background, except that I knew my  
name was Ranma. That I have regained my memory suggests that this is my  
home dimension..."  
  
Soun decided to share his 'hard earned wisdom'. "Well, then. I'm happy  
that you are back and have regained your memory. Now when shall we hold  
the wedding?"  
  
"Yes, this is the perfect time to join the schools." Genma agreed.  
  
Ranma's eyes turned red. "How about never?" He said in a deadly tone.  
  
Soun got enraged. "You will marry my daughter!" He yelled, deploying his  
demon head technique.  
  
"I WILL NOT COMPLY" Ranma replied in a disturbingly monotone voice. Soun  
'eeped' and cowered in his seat. Ranma looked at the other girls in the  
room, giving each of them a harsh glare. "In fact, I will not marry  
anyone in this room."  
  
"What?!" Ukyo exclaimed. "But... why not?" She said on the verge of  
tears.  
  
"Please, Ranma darling. Don't do this to me." Kodachi continued.  
  
"Who is other girl? Will kill obstacle." Shampoo said.  
  
Nodoka was fingering her katana. "Son, it is a matter of honour that you  
marr..."  
  
Ranma cut her off. " Honour? HONOUR? You dare speak about honour, you  
who sent your only son to be raised by that pathetic excuse of a mon-  
keigh?" He said, pointing at Genma. "You don't even know the first thing  
about honour." He said shaking his head. "No, I will not betray my wife  
by thinking of marriage."  
  
"Wife?" Genma exclaimed. "Have you been cheating on your fiancée, boy?"  
  
Ranma only glared at Genma. "Have I?" He said with a snort. "First, I  
didn't even know I had a fiancée. Secondly, even if I had, did you  
really expect me to keep myself in celibacy for thousands of years?  
Besides, my wife has been dead for a long time now." He said with a dark  
expression. "Just think about it. I have lived for almost two millennia,  
and only recently discovered who I previously was. Which set of memories  
do you think takes precedence? Ranma Wildman, 2000 years old or Ranma  
Saotome, 17 years old?"  
  
Nodoka gasped. "You can't be serious."  
  
"Oh I'm deadly serious." Ranma retorted and pointed at his head "In  
fact, I'm currently connected to every record concerning my existence.  
With a thought I could erase them all, without anyone ever noticing.  
It's all up to you. All I ask is that you nullify any and all  
agreements, made by Genma, concerning me. "  
  
"But I can't do that..." Nodoka hesitated, glancing at Genma.  
  
"Don't worry about _him_." Ranma almost spat at Genma. "I've just made  
you the sole head of the Saotome clan so the decision is in your  
entirely in your hands."  
  
Genma gasped. "You can't do that!"  
  
"I just did." Ranma said with a glare. He turned back to Nodoka,  
ignoring Genma's protests. "So, what will it be?"  
  
Nodoka looked desperate. "Please, don't make me do this." She pleaded.  
Ranma only glared. "I can't..." she whispered, tears streaming down her  
cheeks.  
  
"So be it." Ranma said, getting a blank look for a second, before  
continuing. "It is done. Ranma Saotome has never existed."  
  
Cologne spoke up. "Don't think you're off the hook yet, son-in-law.  
Japanese honour may recognize you as dead, but the amazons do not care  
about a name."  
  
"Ah yes, the 'young' ghoul." He said sarcastically. "I agree with you on  
that point. However, I'm offering you an alternative."  
  
Cologne raised an eyebrow. "Really? And what are you proposing?"  
  
"That you release me from the law concerning the supposed marriage to  
Xian Pu. In return I will become an ally to the amazon tribe, helping in  
the defence of any and all threats to it."  
  
"And if I refuse?"  
  
"Then your pitiful tribe will be reduced to its composing atoms." Ranma  
answered calmly. He pressed a button his wrist and the big shoulder gun  
he had previously used in his initial confrontation appeared. He tapped  
it with a finger. "This is a MAC gun, and it's of my own design. I  
highly doubt that you have missed what it can do unless of course you  
have escaped the 'wonders' of television. What you do not know is that I  
can possibly destroy this entire planet with it, let alone a small  
backwards village in the wilderness of China."  
  
"You're bluffing." Cologne said confidently, yet internally she feared  
the power that the gun could release.  
  
Mercury interjected. "No, he's not. In fact, if using a powerful enough  
power source, he could even destroy this entire solar system. I have to  
admit that I didn't truly believe it at first, but I made some  
calculations and his claim is quite true." She said with a shudder.  
  
Cologne considered that for a minute. She was cornered and she didn't  
like it one bit. She had seen what the gun could do and it was certainly  
powerful, but could it truly be as powerful as Ranma and the girl  
claimed? Of course, the girl could be working with Ranma, but she seemed  
sincere enough, and just thinking of what would happen if Ranma's claim  
was true, made her shiver. She turned to Ranma and looked darkly at him.  
"I... will think about it."  
  
"Good enough for me." Ranma said, dismissing the gun. "Now, just to make  
sure there are no misunderstandings, I am Ranma Wildman and I have no  
connections to any of you, with the exception of Cologne." His eyes  
shifted back from red to green. He looked in concern at Kasumi. "Kasumi,  
Ranma Saotome thought of you as a mother and I feel the same way. I  
strongly urge you to leave this place of madness." He turned to Nabiki.  
"Ranma Saotome never understood you Nabiki, but I do. I give you the  
same advice as Kasumi; leave, and never look back."  
  
Akane looked like she was about to explode. "Stop talking like that to  
my sisters!"  
  
"Oh? Am I not allowed to say good bye?" He said in mock surprise. His  
gaze softened considerably as he looked at Akane. "I'm sorry for this  
Akane, but I cannot in good conscience think about any type of marriage.  
I'm too dangerous." He said gravely. "I can tell you one thing though,  
Ranma Saotome, would gladly have married you..." He said and turned to  
leave.  
  
Akane was stunned by this revelation but before she could answer another  
voice cut in. "Ranma, you coward! Prepare to die!" Ryoga yelled as he  
charged. Ranma calmly turned, not even bothering to dodge. Seemingly  
without moving, Ranma suddenly had his hand around Ryoga's throat and he  
proceeded to lift the lost boy up in the air.  
  
"Ah, the eternally lost pig. How are you these days? Claiming to be  
miserable, as usual?" Ranma said with a Kasumi like smile. "Then try  
harder. You say that you have seen hell because of me, though somehow I  
doubt it. I on the other hand has seen lots of hells and let me tell you  
something, hell is more inviting than being around you." He finished  
darkly.  
  
"Shut... up..." Ryoga growled despite having trouble breathing. He  
suddenly stabbed Ranma in the left chest plate and with a cry of  
"Bakusai Tenketsu!" the plate shattered. The gemstones imbedded in it  
was freed and dropped to the floor.  
  
Ranma staggered back, loosing his hold on Ryoga's throat, but he didn't  
appear to be hurt. He looked down at the shattered plate, then the  
gemstones, then Ryoga and finally back to the gemstones. "Normally I  
would be impressed by such a show of skill." He calmly stated. He looked  
up, staring straight at Ryoga. "However, that was my wife and daughter's  
spirit stones." He said with an almost insane grin. His eyes turned  
impossibly dark and an aura black enough to blot out the sun formed  
around him.  
  
Ryoga had only a second to realise that this would hurt.  
  
Ranma seemed to almost vanish but if Ryoga was any indication, Ranma was  
most definitely still there. The lost boy seemingly hovered one foot  
above the floor held aloft by hundreds and hundreds of blows. The sound  
was almost deafening, and it seemed like the punishment would never end.  
However, almost as abruptly as it had started, it stopped, dropping  
Ryoga to the floor. The lost boy was a mess, almost every joint was  
aimed in the wrong direction, massive bruises could be seen forming all  
over his body and his face was nothing more than a bloody pulp. Ranma  
carefully stepped over the limp body and tenderly gathered up the  
gemstones.  
  
"I have other matters to attend to. Good day to you all." He said,  
turning to leave. However Ukyo, Shampoo and Kodachi stopped him.  
  
"Please Ranma." Ukyo cried. "Why are you doing this?" Kodachi and  
Shampoo could only agree.  
  
"Yes, tell us why." Sailor Pluto interjected. "Somehow I feel that you  
are not telling us everything." She said with a smirk.  
  
Ranma shot her a dark glare before turning back to the girls. "As I have  
told you, I had a wife once and together with her I had a wonderful  
daughter." His expression turned even darker. "I killed them myself." He  
finished before leaving the dojo.  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
More secrets are revealed and even more questions are raised. Ranma's  
curse is almost cured? Does anyone think the Nerima Wrecking Crew will  
give up on Ranma? And most importantly, what did happen to his wife and  
daughter?  
  
Some questions will be answered in the coming chapter but rest assured  
that most answers will only be revealed at the very end (If you find the  
clues that is (Ph34r m3. I'm Evul! ^___^)). Stay tuned for the next  
chapter of Balance of Chaos: Neither bad nor good (Yeah I know. I sound  
like an announcer in a bad show from the seventies).  
  
Just another thing, please don't believe that this chapter was all  
bashing. The reason for Ranma's cold behaviour will be apparent later  
on... (Actually it should already be apparent but only if you've seen  
all the clues ^___^)  
  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will also  
feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	5. Neither Bad nor Good, part 1

Finished: 2002-12-14  
  
Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma ½ has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma ½  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese"  
*Thoughts*  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
  
Chapter 4: Neither Bad nor Good  
  
Part 1  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
Setsuna turned of the VCR and faced the other Senshi. "Well, now you  
know." She stated tiredly.  
  
With the exception of Ami, the other Senshi had a disbelieving  
expression. "How sad..." Usagi said, getting a round of nods from the  
other girls.  
  
Setsuna turned to Ami. "Have you found out anything worthwhile?"  
  
Ami looked up from her computer and shook her head. "Nothing that can  
help us verify his claims, with the exception of the existence of Ranma  
Saotome or rather lack of. Mrs Saotome's medical records state that she  
had a child about 17 years ago but it was dead at birth. Other than that  
there's absolutely nothing on him!"  
  
The other Senshi blink-blinked at Ami's outburst. "Don't worry about it  
Ami." Minako tried to calm the blue-haired Senshi of Mercury. "I'm sure  
you'll find something soon."  
  
Ami rubbed her temples. "You don't get it. When doing a big identity  
deletion like this, there are always traces, leftovers and blatant  
misses that might be found with the Mercury Computer. However in this  
case, I haven't been able to find a single instance of deleted and/or  
changed files. The worst part is that it seemingly happened in under a  
second. Not even the Mercury Computer is that powerful!"  
  
"Doesn't that mean he's just very good?" Usagi asked somewhat confused.  
  
"I hope so. Otherwise, the next time I meet him, I will hound him until  
he shows me his computer." Ami stated rather forcefully. The other  
Senshi sweatdropped. This was not an Ami they were used to. Ami  
continued oblivious to all this. "On another note, I finally finished my  
analysis on that piece of armour he so casually discarded when we first  
met."  
  
Setsuna raised an eyebrow. How could that possibly help them? As if  
sensing the unspoken question Ami continued. "Of course this doesn't  
really tell us anything, except confirming the fact that we are dealing  
with some extremely high-tech equipment. The armour plate consists of  
several layers of metal alloys and composite materials intermeshed with  
each other on a molecular level. However one of the layers are most  
intriguing..."  
  
"Don't keep us waiting." Rei said. "Out with it."  
  
"I'm still trying to figure this one out, so bear with me." Ami took a  
glance at the assembled Senshi. "To be blunt, this material doesn't  
exist."  
  
"Doesn't exist?" Usagi blurted out. "That's not possible, right?"  
  
"You're telling me? Frankly I didn't even think I was going to be able  
to identify it, but just as I was about to give up, the Mercury Computer  
managed to find something. It was a theory from a Mercurian research  
report dating even slightly before the Silver Millennium. The scientists  
theorized about a substance called adamantium, which is lightweight yet  
dense and nearly indestructible. The hardest material in the universe  
basically."  
  
"You're trying to tell us that there is something that's harder and more  
durable than the 'woman's best friend'?" Michiru asked in disbelief.  
  
"Yes, in fact, if the theory is correct, diamonds are not even a close  
second. And I'm ready to believe it since it's the only thing that comes  
close." Ami stated.  
  
"And he just threw away something that's better than diamonds..." Minako  
said in awe. The other silently agreed.  
  
"So, getting anything with that mind-thingamajig?" Usagi suddenly asked  
Setsuna after a moment of silence.  
  
Setsuna blinked in surprise, she hadn't even remembered about that  
herself. Somewhere in the recesses of her mind, she was impressed that  
the ditzy blond even remembered about the mind meld. "No, just after he  
left the dojo, he sent a mental message stating that the technique was  
malfunctioning and promptly cut off the link between us."  
  
"Just like that? No problems at all?" Usagi asked, concern evident in  
her voice.  
  
"Just like that, but you don't have to worry, I didn't feel any pain  
from it." Setsuna reassured her leader and the blonde girl let out a  
breath of relief. "Still, now that I think back on it, there was  
something wrong though..."  
  
Setsuna had everyone's undivided attention now. "Can you remember?"  
Usagi asked.  
  
"Well, I could feel a lot of feelings... depression, anger, disgust...  
and something more..." The green haired Senshi of time got a look of  
deep concentration as she tried to recall the mental message Ranma had  
sent her the night before. "There was hatred..." She began. "An immense  
hatred." Setsuna shivered involuntarily.  
  
"Hatred? At what?"  
  
"I-I cannot say." Setsuna stuttered. "E-Everything I guess, but I can't  
be sure of that. I could feel pain intertwined with pleasure and a vast  
darkness... Kami... it was horrible." She whispered and hugged herself  
as if she was cold.  
  
Hotaru moved over and embraced her surrogate parent. "Don't worry  
Setsuna-mama. We are all here." She said soothingly. Setsuna however  
seemed oblivious to the rest of the world.  
  
"Pain and pleasure, pleasure and pain... " The Senshi of time babbled on  
with blank look, while shaking uncontrollably.  
  
The others could only stare in horror at her. However, when she started  
giggling like a maniac Haruka got up and slapped the green-haired woman  
full in the face. It took a few moments for Setsuna to gather her wits.  
"What happened?" She asked, distressed by everyone staring at her.  
  
"You spaced out and started babbling and giggling. Almost looked like  
you were in the process of being possessed. I had to slap you to bring  
you out of it." Haruka explained.  
  
Setsuna rubbed her tender cheek. "Yeah, I can feel that. Thanks."  
  
Hotaru once again embraced the older woman in a hug. "Are you alright  
now Setsuna-mama?" She asked in concern.  
  
Setsuna forced a smile for the younger girl. "Yes, no need to worry."  
Her expression turned dark. "I don't know what just caused this but I  
can guess... Ranma."  
  
"Are you sure about that?" Usagi said, not ready to believe that Ranma  
might have tried to possess one of her teammates.  
  
Setsuna turned her dark gaze to Usagi causing the blonde to cower a bit  
in her seat. "I'm ready to believe just about anything when it comes to  
him."  
  
Ami coughed, getting everyone's attention. "There are too many unknown  
factors here. Let's just be cautious around him." She warned.  
  
"Oh I'll be cautious alright." Setsuna said. "I'll find out his true  
motives, mark my words." She stated forcefully and promptly vanished.  
  
"I believe the shit is about to hit the windmill." Minako said, breaking  
the awkward silence that followed. Everyone just stared at her. "What?"  
Minako said totally oblivious to what she just said. Of course no one  
could have guessed just how correct she was.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki stood before the UN ETSPP building silently wondering how to  
approach it. It was now three weeks since that fateful day at the dojo  
and not a word had been heard from Ranma, just as he had said.  
  
The atmosphere at the dojo and Nerima in general was tense to say the  
least. Ranma's former fiancées and suitors had taken his words and  
actions harshly and all were quite depressed. Even Akane was down,  
although she did alternate between that state and cold fury. Being  
around her was just not safe for anyone and all but Kuno seemed to have  
gotten the message that a 10-meter safety zone was required around Akane  
whenever she was in her angry mood.  
  
Her father and Mr. Saotome was of course planning for a way to get Ranma  
back, but so far they had come up with nothing useful. This was in  
itself understandable since they were drinking heavily every night and  
couldn't remember squat the next morning. Happosai on the other hand was  
unusually pensive and spent several hours each day pondering. Nabiki  
couldn't say what he was brooding about but she was sure it mostly  
involved Ranma (She didn't believe the old pervert could stray  
completely from the path of perversion.)  
  
Happosai wasn't the only one that tried to emulate the famous old Greek  
statue of the pondering man. Kasumi seemed to be equally pensive. Sure,  
most people would not have noticed any difference, but then again, most  
people wasn't Nabiki. The pristine smile Kasumi often wore seemed to  
become more and more forced and Nabiki was sure it was only a matter of  
time before Kasumi actually became truly angry with someone. (Most  
likely her father and Mr. Saotome.)  
  
There were a couple of people that she had not met recently but she knew  
quite well from her cronies and contacts what happened to them anyway.  
Ryoga was still in a coma in the hospital. Ranma had done a serious  
number on him but the doctors assured everyone that the lost boy would  
eventually come around and recover. The amazons weren't doing anything  
special, with the exception of Shampoo being very depressed. Ukyo had  
not been seen since Ranma left the dojo and her restaurant had not  
opened ever since.  
  
Nabiki couldn't say much of Nodoka either but from what Kasumi told her,  
who visited the older woman frequently, she had lapsed into a severe  
depression. Apparently, she took Ranma's words very hard and had become  
more or less apathetic to the surrounding world. She didn't do much more  
than sleep and cry and would probably have faded away to nothing more  
than a mere shell if Kasumi had not been over and helped her.  
  
As for her self, well to say that she was tired of the tense atmosphere  
back in Nerima was like saying Kuno is slightly eccentric. Although she  
wouldn't admit it to anyone, she was dying to know what truly happened  
to Ranma during his travels. She did not believe he had lied earlier but  
there was still so much that needed to be filled in. Like what happened  
to his wife for instance.  
  
As she stood there racking her brain for a plausible excuse for getting  
into the building she heard a sound behind her.  
  
***  
  
Ranma yawned just as he stepped out from the portal. *Damn the asses  
upstairs* He thought sourly. *The ETSPP works just fine. So what if  
there is some collateral damage due to our operations? * However, the  
person in front of him cut his musings short.  
  
"Please tell me I'm still sleeping." He prayed while pinching the ridge  
of his nose. He opened his eyes only to find a nervous looking Nabiki  
still standing in front of him. "So, what brings you here Ms. Tendo?" He  
said in a menacing tone.  
  
Nabiki wanted to smack herself for being intimidated by Ranma. She was  
the Ice Queen of Furinkan for Kami's sake! "Uhm, well... you see..." She  
stuttered while trying to come up with an excuse.  
  
"If you came to admire the view then I suggest you go somewhere else.  
Now good day to you Ms. Tendo. " He said and walked past her.  
  
Nabiki whirled on her spot. "No! I came clear up the mess I got involved  
with concerning stolen information. You never did finish that one."  
There, she finally managed to find a good explanation.  
  
Ranma stopped in his tracks and let his shoulders slump in defeat. This  
was not his day apparently. "Well, don't just stand there." He said  
without looking back. "Follow me." He commanded. Nabiki did not need to  
be told twice.  
  
***  
  
After a short elevator ride, Nabiki got her first view of the ETSPP  
bureau inside (Well, other than the inside of a prison cell that is.)  
and she had to admit, she was impressed. First was the reception area  
where literally hundreds of different types of creatures lounged. She  
could swear she saw a were-wolf, a vampire and an Oni or two along with  
several other species she could not identify. Still, Ranma seemed to  
ignore all that and with Nabiki behind him he swiftly navigated through  
the crowd and ended up in the Ops room. One wall was taken up by a  
multitude of monitors and several rows of computers were located before  
it. To Nabiki this room looked like it was directly taken from a NASA or  
military command centre except that the equipment looked much more high-  
tech.  
  
While Nabiki studied the room with a keen eye, Ranma walked over to a  
computer and logged on. He typed furiously and within seconds he would  
have the report finished and the case close. It hurt to push away people  
he cared for. *No. * he reprimanded himself. *Who Ranma Saotome cared  
for. * Still he had centuries of experience of doing so, and he was sure  
he would be able to dismiss the entire matter in a couple of days, just  
like he always did. A couple of keystrokes more and he would be free of  
Nabiki.  
  
Suddenly, an alarm klaxon went off and his screen immediately changed to  
a yellowish hue. Sighing, he stood up and took a look at the main  
screen. "Great... another 'dragon'." He said with another sigh.  
  
Nabiki couldn't help overhearing his comment and took another look at  
the screen. Sure there was... something... shown on the main screen, but  
she was sure it was no dragon. Of course, she wasn't exactly an expert  
on mythological creatures, but the big, white bone-like thing she saw  
didn't even seem alive, much less looking like a legendary dragon.  
  
"Hey Ranma." She hesitantly began. "Correct me if I'm wrong but that..."  
She pointed at the screen. "Does not look anything like a dragon to me."  
  
  
Ranma shot her a quick glance before returning his attention to the  
screen. "Actually, you're right." He said as his eyes scanned the  
information that was piling up on the smaller screens beside the main  
one. "It's really just a nickname we have for that type of creature. Of  
course, there are real dragons as well but they prefer to be called by  
something else than just plain 'dragon'."  
  
"Kintaro!" He suddenly yelled in a voice similar to that of a military  
drill instructor.  
  
A black mop of hair shot up from one of the computers and turned around.  
"Yes sir?" Came a questioning voice.  
  
Ranma jerked a thumb in Nabiki's direction. "Keep an eye on this girl  
here while I go out for a ride."  
  
The guy named Kintaro suddenly got wide in adoration (Of course, those  
familiar with Happosai and/or Ataru Moroboshi would have called the  
guy's expression leering.) as he took a quick look at Nabiki. He  
recovered quickly though and turned back to Ranma with a salute.  
"Consider it done, sir. By the way, are you taking 'the Valkyrie'?"  
  
Ranma smiled evilly as he answered. "Yeah, gotta teach that punk that  
Japan's airspace is not a playground for anyone else but me." With that  
he turned on his heel and took a doorway leading out of the ops room.  
  
***  
  
Apparently 'the Valkyrie' was considered a great show in the ops room  
since as soon as Ranma left the room Kintaro yelled over the hubbub  
"He's taking the Valkyrie!" The reaction was instantaneous and almost  
every screen in the ops room changed to show an airplane taking to the  
air. At first Nabiki couldn't understand just exactly what was so  
special about one airplane, but after ten minutes, when the plane  
intercepted the 'dragon', it soon became clear what the commotion was  
all about.  
  
In a swift movement the entire plane changed form to that of a 13-meter  
tall robot and engaged the 'dragon' with a barrage of missiles and guns  
blazing. Nabiki's eyes almost bugged out of their sockets. It was like  
watching an anime only this was real life! The entire skirmish didn't  
last long and a mighty cheer went up in the ops room just as the  
'dragon' began its retreat.  
  
Of course, just because the skirmish was over didn't mean Nabiki would  
be bored during the 10 or so minutes it would take Ranma to return. That  
Kintaro guy didn't seem to care much about her so she busied herself  
with listening in on the conversations in the ops room.  
  
"We've got a 2319 here!"  
"Huh, what are you talking about?"  
"Are you blind or something? Look at the screen, there's an alien  
attacking a human!"  
"Oh that. That's just Lum and her boyfriend, Ataru. Don't worry, he has  
survived worse."  
"And just how do you know that?"  
"I'm from Tomobiki, remember? Things like that are commonplace there."  
"Oh... never mind then."  
  
~KABOOOM~  
"BRENTEN!"  
"I'm here chief. I helped you sort out all those complaints, remember?"  
"Yeah, I remember... But then who?"  
"Is there really any need to ask that chief?"  
"No, that's true... LEONA!"  
  
"Study, study, study!"  
  
"Hey does anyone know where to file Monstrous-Rampagers-In-Learning  
licenses?"  
"Yeah, section C 3. Look under Godzilla. Can't miss it. What's the  
occasion by the way?"  
"It's Godzilla's kids actually. They've reached that age and has to  
start training."  
"Ah, I understand. I'm dreading that with my own kids."  
"Heh, yeah I know what you mean."  
  
"Study, study, study!"  
  
"Another video girl?"  
"Yeah, they are becoming more and more popular it seems."  
"Too popular if you ask me."  
"Actually, you might be right about that. I'll start an investigation.  
Let's hope it's not a new group of video pirates."  
  
Nabiki shook her head to clear it from overloading. More than half of  
the conversations she could barely make out the gist of. It was somewhat  
relieving to see Ranma entering the room again. After a couple of  
greetings, congratulations and high-fives with the staff he finally came  
up to her.  
  
He took an evaluating glance at her before he spoke up. "So, let's clear  
this mess up then."  
  
Before he could turn back to his computer, the Kintaro guy stood up with  
a folder ready. "Already fixed, sir."  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. The guy who seemed like a minor pervert and  
yelled "Study!" all the time had finished the case just like that? She  
looked at Ranma briefly and from his reaction, or rather lack of; she  
deemed that this was a common occurrence. Clearly there were some  
talented people working in this building. To top it off, she was still  
curious about Ranma's past and consequently she found the decision to be  
an easy one to make.  
  
Ranma skimmed through the folder before turning to Nabiki. To his  
surprise she stood there with her arms folded and a small smile on her  
face. "So... where do I sign up?" She asked as if talking to a military  
recruitment officer.  
  
Ranma only raised a questioning eyebrow in response. "Don't give me that  
look." Nabiki answered with a slight scowl. "You were the one who wanted  
me to grow up and get a life away from the dojo, remember?"  
  
"You do not need to remind _me_." Ranma retorted. "I know perfectly well  
what you are talking about. However, I don't know if you got what it  
takes." He said in a condescending tone.  
  
Nabiki's Ice Queen mask was firm in place so she didn't respond to his  
barb, yet inwardly she seethed in anger. *Why that... Calm down, he's  
just testing you. * She calmed herself before she responded. "Well, we  
will never find out if I don't get a chance to prove myself, now will  
we? Of course, if you think you can afford losing what I have to offer,  
then I know where the door is." She said with her usual unreadable  
expression. Mentally, she was smirking though. Their conversation was  
gathering some attention amongst the staff in the ops room, and she knew  
from the little information she managed to glean from the stolen files,  
that more or less anyone, who was a citizen of earth, was supposed to  
given a chance by the ETSPP. Can't have a planet wide organisation  
safeguarding against foreign influences if you don't trust the planet's  
own inhabitants. Basically, Ranma couldn't turn her down without  
evaluating her first.  
  
Ranma sighed and his shoulders slumped. "Well, go back the way you came  
then. At the entrance there's a desk called reception. Just tell them, I  
sent you. "  
  
Nabiki smiled at her victory and headed out of the ops room in search of  
the desk Ranma mentioned.  
  
Back in the ops room, Ranma couldn't help smiling a bit. Maybe this day  
wouldn't be so bad after all...  
  
***  
  
8 days later, Nabiki entered the bureau as an operative of the ETSPP  
bureau. She couldn't be happier. Well, actually she could but  
considering the circumstances, she was more than satisfied with the  
proceedings. First off was the pay. Definitely more than enough to  
support her. Heck, she could probably use her pay to keep the dojo from  
going under and still have quite a bit of money left for herself.  
However, she wasn't so sure she wanted to do that. Her father was going  
to have to accept some responsibility. She wouldn't admit it anyone but  
she was more than a bit tired of having to take care of the dojo's  
finances.  
  
Anyway, second came her job assignment. The evaluators quickly  
recognized her skills in a lot of fields, even areas she herself didn't  
even know of. For instance, she never dreamed that she would be a good  
marksman. The evaluators deemed her good enough for the designation  
agent. Agents were really the field operatives of the bureau and hence  
had a very wide range of responsibilities. Their jobs were therefore the  
most dangerous in the bureau. Nabiki quite obviously lacked in the  
combat skills and special abilities apartment, but the evaluators  
reassured her that she was to be paired up with a skilled partner. What  
she was not told was that the bureau was testing out a new brain-brawn  
type of partnering. This, they hoped, would reduce the amount of  
collateral damage done by some agents, like Ranma for instance or the  
infamous Kei and Yuri.  
  
In any case, she was grateful for being assigned as an agent. As  
interesting as the ops room seemed, she was certain she would be quite  
bored if she was to sit at a computer all day long. Sure, her dream had  
long been to become an executive of a big company, yet spending almost a  
year with Ranma meant that she became easily bored. Something strange,  
bizarre or just plain ridiculous had to happen to keep her entertained  
and the ETSPP seemed like the perfect place for that.  
  
Since the evaluation was finished 2 days ago she had taken the next two  
days to get an apartment, effectively moving out of the Tendo dojo. Soun  
quite obviously bawled his eyes out since 'his little girls were growing  
up' but he had helped with the quick move. Nabiki couldn't help but to  
feel like everything went too fast. Just eight days ago she was still  
living in the dojo, now she had to take care of a job and an apartment.  
  
As she walked into the ops room for the first time as an agent, she was  
greeted by a scowling Ranma and a red-faced ops-commander.  
  
"You know me, Chief. I work alone." Ranma stated with crossed arms.  
  
'Chief' "quickly retorted. Nabiki was sure she could hear a lion roaring  
as he spoke. "I don't care what you think, Wildman! This is a direct  
order and you'd do well to obey it."  
  
Ranma only snorted. "Hmph! If the asses upstairs are so concerned about  
damage on buildings then let's see them do any better."  
  
"That's beside the point! Orders are orders and you know what that  
means. I swear, only Leona is worse than you."  
  
"Well, she did have a good teacher. And don't forget Kei and Yuri."  
Ranma stated with a smirk.  
  
"Don't remind me about them! If I have a heart attack and die, I will  
come back and haunt you." Chief turned his head and fixed Nabiki with  
his eyes. "Ah, here she is."  
  
Ranma turned as well. His eyes widened for a brief moment before he let  
out a groan. "Damnit Murphy, why do you always have to torment me?" He  
asked no one in particular.  
  
"It's nice to see you too Saotome. And who's Murphy by the way?" Nabiki  
asked with a scowl.  
  
Ranma narrowed his eyes at her. "It's Wildman, remember? As for Murphy,  
let's just say that shitty things happen around me."  
  
Nabiki winced slightly. It was hard to adjust to his new name. "Sorry."  
She said sincerely. "Now what's all this about? It's not like I could  
help overhearing."  
  
"That, my girl, is quite simple." Chief cut in. "This bonehead over  
here..." he said while smacking Ranma on the back of his head. "...has  
been assigned a partner. Namely you." Chief pointedly ignored Ranma's  
red-eyed glare. "Of course, he doesn't want a partner, since he, along  
with Brenten, are the bureau's biggest boneheads." The aforementioned  
Brenten was currently screaming his head off while mauling a computer.  
Something about 'silicon shitbags'. Neither Ranma nor Chief batted an  
eye about it, but Nabiki couldn't help sweatdropping at the scene.  
  
*Well... maybe I was wrong about 'talented people'...* She absently  
thought before deciding to torment Ranma a little further. "Why Ranma!  
Such high praise your boss is giving you." Nabiki snickered. She quickly  
shut up when Ranma focused his gaze on her, but the smirk never left her  
lips.  
  
"It looks like you two will work wonderfully together." Chief said in an  
overly happy tone. "You have your orders, now follow them!" He declared  
before leaving.  
  
Ranma let out a sigh as Chief left and he turned his full attention to  
Nabiki. "So..." He began. "It looks like I can't get out of this. Just  
don't think I will be around to save your cute little butt all the  
time."  
  
"Thanks for the compliment." Nabiki answered sarcastically. "I know when  
to keep my head down and since I'm partnered with you I'll probably have  
to do it even in my sleep. I'm not Ms. 'I'm-a-martial-artist-too' you  
know."  
  
"True enough." Ranma conceded. "Still, I'd feel better if I knew you had  
some means of protecting yourself. What gear did they give you?"  
  
"Gear? Well, a rulebook, a mini computer, some protective clothes and a  
shield generator of some kind, don't remember it's full name though.  
They were also talking about a gun, a twenty-two they called it,  
whatever that means."  
  
That got a strange reaction from Ranma. He just started laughing.  
Scratch that, he was literally rolling on the floor laughing his ass  
off. Nabiki patiently waited for him to finish with a deep scowl and  
crossed arms. As he stood up Nabiki continued. "Mind explaining what's  
so funny? I know I'm not exactly a gun expert, heck I hadn't even seen  
one in real life before they took me to the shooting range, but there's  
no reason to belittle me for lack of knowledge."  
  
"It's not that." Ranma said as he dried his tears. "Heh, it's not that  
at all. A twenty-two means calibre .22, which basically is the smallest,  
most pathetic bullet you can find. Giving you something like that is an  
insult really. Especially since most people around here use at least  
5.56 mm NATO."  
  
Nabiki didn't know what 5.56 NATO was but she got the gist of it. "Well,  
what do you expect? It's not like I've been through any training. That's  
a thing that's been bothering me actually, why did they push me through  
evaluation so quickly? I expected at least two, three weeks before  
something happened and a couple of months in training as well. Instead  
they just hand me some stuff and throw me into service. I mean, I'm not  
even through school."  
  
"We're shorthanded." Ranma replied absently. "Say, how good were you at  
the shooting range?" He continued with a glint in his eyes.  
  
His strange look unnerved Nabiki for some reason. "Well, they said I'm  
definitely above average, especially considering that I've never touched  
a gun before."  
  
Ranma's face lit up in a huge grin. "Great! Now just follow me..." He  
happily declared and grabbed her arm.  
  
Nabiki didn't even have time to protest as he dragged them both through  
a portal. She recognized the nauseous feeling from her first  
teleportation yet it was considerably less this time. It quickly abated  
as they came out of another portal. "What did you do that for?" Nabiki  
almost yelled at him.  
  
Ranma's grin never left his face. "Just doing some shopping."  
  
"Shopping?" Nabiki asked in confusion as she took in her surroundings.  
It was... white. An endless sea of white. But that was not the most  
disturbing thing. No, in front of her stood hundreds upon hundreds of  
racks, filled with rifles, pistols, machineguns... you name it. She  
could only gape at the enormity of it. Trying to clear her head she  
turned her head sideways to get it out of her sight.  
  
Big mistake. To her left, dozens of even bigger guns, cannons really,  
were arranged in neat rows. Behind them came regular artillery pieces  
and howitzers. After a short while she began noticing that there was a  
distinct separation between archaic, modern and futuristic armament as  
well. She wouldn't have been surprised if this place came complete with  
an orangutan called the librarian.  
  
Turning to the right she found a relatively weapon's free area and she  
closed her eyes to allow her abused brain to sort through her scattered  
thoughts. *Calm down. * She thought. *Just because I'm surrounded by  
more weapons than every country on this planet possess put together,  
doesn't mean I have to freak out. * She took a deep breath before she  
opened her eyes.  
  
"Now this is a sight I could grow to love. Oh I forgot... I already do."  
Ranma chuckled to himself.  
  
"If I didn't know you better I would call you obsessed." She deadpanned.  
"Of course that would be comparing you to Kuno and that wouldn't be  
fair. I mean you clearly have him outclassed in that area." She took  
another deep breath before she continued. "JUST WHAT THE HELL DO YOU  
NEED ALL THESE WEAPONS FOR?!" She screamed at him.  
  
Ranma didn't even flinch at her outburst. "You know, I can hear you just  
fine. As for your question, I have had to supply entire armies with  
equipment from time to time."  
  
"Equipment? There's more?"  
  
"Yes, a vehicle, mech, air and spaceship area, as well as a number of  
workshops and maintenance rooms."  
  
"So, you do not have this incredible yet perversely big collection of  
weapons just for fun?" She asked with a scowl.  
  
"Well, what did you expect? My life has been more or less a constant  
struggle. I can't even begin to calculate all the lives I've taken or  
the battles I've fought. I've never had a choice in the matter." He  
stated with some irritation and a hint of sadness.  
  
"Anyway." He continued. "I didn't bring you here to show off my  
'perverse pleasures' as you would call it. We came here to give you  
something better than the peashooter they were going to issue to you."  
  
"You're the expert." Nabiki replied absently, not really wanting to be  
in this sea of white and weapons.  
  
"Right-y-oh." Ranma said in a distinct English accent before he started  
looking through a thick book, a list of all the weapons, Nabiki guessed.  
  
  
After a couple of minutes muttering to himself, Ranma slammed the book  
shut and picked up something that looked like a small remote control. A  
press of a button and the racks of guns started moving with great speed  
from left to right. Nabiki saw bright, yellow letters on each stand  
flashing by and she once again marvelled at the sheer enormity of this  
place.  
  
The racks soon slowed down and stopped at the letter 'H'. Ranma wasted  
no time and was soon in the process of rummaging through the guns. In  
just a half a minute he apparently had found what he searched for. With  
a rifle in one hand, a clip in the other and a grin on his lips he went  
up to a bench and motioned for Nabiki to come closer.  
  
"This..." He began. "Is a Heckler and Koch MP36F. It is basically a  
combination of the HK G36C and a standard MP5, made almost exclusively  
for the French armed forces. It fires 9x19 mm Parabellum rounds. I have  
to admit that it doesn't pack much of a punch, especially not when  
compared to a fully automatic rifle. However I don't think that's much  
of a consideration, since I don't think you'll be using it much.  
Besides, the main considerations are weight and size and that's where  
this gun excels. Small and very light, the perfect companion in a close  
range firefight. It comes with selector for one shot, burst and fully  
automatic fire." He made a gesture for Nabiki to pick it up.  
  
With some trepidation she moved forward and took the gun in her hands.  
"You're right, it _is_ light." She said in surprise.  
  
"Yes, new alloys and plastic materials allow this gun to weigh only 1.7  
kilograms and that's including the clip. The lack of power is a problem  
but I'll give you something that will take care of that little problem."  
He said with a slight grin.  
  
Nabiki couldn't help chuckling a little. "You know, I understand what  
you meant by shopping now. You look like a car salesman about to sell  
his most expensive car."  
  
"Why Nabiki! Thanks for the compliment!" Ranma's grin stretched from ear  
to ear.  
  
"Oh I wasn't even trying to." She replied good-naturedly before turning  
serious again. She eyed the piece in her hands with distaste. "Is this  
really necessary?" She asked. "I'm not exactly a fighter by any means.  
If I 'fight', I do it with words and brainpower. A gun feels... well  
wrong."  
  
Her distaste didn't go unnoticed by Ranma. "I understand what you mean.  
Most people stay clear of guns their entire lives. Heck, it took some  
200 years before I even shot a gun."  
  
"And prey tell why not?" Nabiki asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"Possibly a stray memory from my past, who knows?" Ranma said with a  
shrug. "I do know however that the situation was dire enough."  
  
The other eyebrow came up. "Dire enough?"  
  
"The Tyranids attacked. If you stay around long enough I might tell you  
about them" Ranma stated with another shrug. Yet under the shrug there  
was something that wasn't right. Even Nabiki had trouble picking it up.  
What was it? A shiver? Deciding to not push Ranma for details she turned  
her attention back to the gun in her hands.  
  
"So how do I use this thing?" She asked.  
  
"Simple. Point at enemy, pull trigger, reload when out of bullets,  
repeat." Ranma said with a smirk.  
  
Nabiki felt like groaning. "Well, duh Einstein! Did you figure that out  
by yourself?" She retorted.  
  
"Yes, but that's beside the point. In any case, I will teach you  
everything you need to know about the gun and how to take care of it.  
Some target practice will have to become part of your regular schedule  
as well."  
  
Nabiki nodded, satisfied with the answer. "Ok I guess I just have to  
deal with it even though I don't like it. Another question though, if  
we're supposed to be agents, wouldn't it be kinda conspicuous to walk  
around with a 50 cm long sub machinegun under the arm?"  
  
"Kinda." Ranma answered sarcastically. "I do have a solution to that  
particular problem though. "  
  
"Don't tell me, it's Ranma's wonder cloaking machine." Nabiki asked,  
equally sarcastic.  
  
"Now that's one solution, but the ones I have tend to be a bit big...  
like a backpack in size." Ranma answered seriously. "No, what I'm  
thinking about is using a subspace pocket."  
  
Nabiki looked a little confused. "Subspace pocket? You mind explaining  
that in terms that a normal person might understand?"  
  
"I'm sure you're aware of at least some theories of multiple dimensions  
and such, right?"  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "I'm no rocket scientist exactly but yes, I  
have heard of such theories. One theory is the Einstein-Rosen Bridge if  
I'm not entirely mistaken."  
  
"Very good. Yes Einstein had some interesting theories and I can  
personally attest to their validity. However, there is more to those  
theories than just simple multiple dimensions." At Nabiki's questioning  
look he continued. "For instance, this place that we are in now is a  
subspace pocket. Now a subspace pocket is really nothing more than  
another plane of existence."  
  
"Another plane of existence... like a parallel dimension?" Nabiki  
questioned.  
  
"No, the theory of planes of existence, or just simply planes, could be  
compared with a differing frequency of a dimension. To understand how  
this is possible I would have to go into very complicated theories in  
physics, most of which even I do not understand. Suffice to say, a  
subspace pocket is not another dimension, although not truly part of the  
dimension is resides in."  
  
"Hold on now." Nabiki stopped him. "I'm not really following you."  
  
Ranma sighed. "Can't say I blame you. This is complicated physics." He  
got a pondering look for a moment before he continued. "Let's do an  
analogy... Suppose that a dimension is like a book." He waited for  
Nabiki to nod in understanding. "Now a book has several pages, each  
representing a plane. Each paper is separate from the other yet the back  
of the book's cover connects them all. "  
  
"I'm still not sure if I'm getting all this, but go on."  
  
Ranma suddenly smacked his forehead. "Why didn't I think of it earlier!"  
He exclaimed. "Just where do you think Moose keeps all his stuff?"  
  
Nabiki's eyes widened in understanding. "So you mean Moose keeps all his  
weapons in a subspace pocket?"  
  
"Yes! And that's not all. Just where do you think Akane hides her  
damnable mallet?"  
  
Nabiki's eyes widened even further. "You know, I've never thought of  
that before." Nabiki replied chuckling. "Although I must say it's nice  
to have at least a partial explanation to the craziness back home. I'm  
curious though... just where did Akane learn a hidden-weapons  
technique."  
  
"Beats me. Some people can apparently do it unconsciously, like me for  
instance."  
  
"Huh? That's not right. You had no such abilities before you  
disappeared."  
  
"I didn't?" Ranma asked slightly puzzled. "Hmm, let me check my memory."  
He said before getting a blank look. Ten seconds later his eyes once  
again came to life. "Well I don't know what to say. I've been able to  
use subspace pockets ever since the crossing. Of course it took some  
1300 years before a doctor discovered their presence and another 300  
before a scientist taught me what they really were."  
  
"Just what did you do?" Nabiki asked. "I remember that look from before.  
You look like you're dead a couple of seconds."  
  
"Oh that. Well, that's a thing I gained from the crossing. My brain has  
five implants that make it work like a computer. Among other things it  
lets me access my subconscious, meaning that I can backtrack everything  
my brain has ever 'recorded'. I can also connect to virtually every  
computer system in existence." He finished with a smug look.  
  
"I guess that might come in handy sometimes... another question though.  
Just what's this crossing you're referring to?"  
  
Ranma scratched the back of his head. "I suppose I have to give you the  
full story soon... anyway, the crossing is my name for my disappearance.  
The short story is this, I reappeared in another dimension and the  
people there was not too happy to see me. As I tried to escape I  
stumbled upon an artefact, which attached itself to me and changed me.  
However, that's just what I've been told. I can't remember anything from  
the point where I woke up in that dimension."  
  
"Any more changes I should know about? I mean besides you being a 2000  
years old time travelling, butt-kicking, super-computer-for-a-brain,  
weapon fanatic, bad-ass." Nabiki asked with a frown.  
  
"Thanks for the compliments. Besides, you forgot pervert." Ranma pointed  
out, grinning like a madman.  
  
"I should have known... Just when I thought your ego couldn't get any  
bigger I just had to open my mouth and give it a boost." She mock  
scowled.  
  
"Oh but you haven't even seen half of it yet." Ranma replied still  
grinning. His expression turned serious before he continued. "Anyway, as  
I said I'm going to give you a device that let's you access a subspace  
pocket."  
  
"And just how will I access it?"  
  
"Simple. The device is made up of two parts. The first is attached to  
the gun, acting like a homing beacon. The other part can be compared to  
a remote control. Whenever you push the button on the control, the gun  
will materialize in your hands. I'm giving you a subspace clip as well,  
which means you will never have to worry about reloading. "  
  
"Subspace clip?"  
  
"It directly feeds to a special subspace pocket of mine. I keep all my  
ammunition there."  
  
"Let me guess, you have a couple of billion bullets in that pocket?"  
  
"Something like that." Ranma replied with an almost feral grin. His eyes  
suddenly got the same glint as before he dragged her off to this place  
and she could swear they got slit like a cat's eyes. "Say how about you  
and I take a stroll down to the shooting range?"  
  
Nabiki couldn't help feeling like a mouse trapped by a cat... a very big  
cat. "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like whatever you are  
planning to do?"  
  
"No reason at all." He said in a very serious tone. Of course it was  
spoiled by his next sentence. "Just want to see you frag some targets."  
With that he grabbed a _very_ big gun from the racks and ran off to  
another portal.  
  
Just as before Nabiki had no chance to protest when he dragged her with  
him. *Oh well. * She thought. *I suppose it could have been worse. * Of  
course, she just had to choose that moment to remember Ranma's  
definition of training and that she was supposed to participate. She  
could only pray that Ranma had changed in that particular area.  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
What's this? Nabiki as Ranma's partner? Just what might my reasons be  
for doing that? You'll never know... MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!  
  
Hrmm... anyway, Nabiki is now working for the UN ETSPP bureau and she  
got an entire new set of responsibilities. Will she be able to keep her  
mercenary instincts at bay or will she sell the information to the  
higgest bidder? And will she ever use that gun? Find out in the coming  
chapters...  
  
I have to admit that it took quite a while for me to actually update   
this story. The reason for it is quite simple; the entire chapter 4 is   
over 50 pages long and for me that's huge. Next up I'll work on my   
other stories, especially Mirror Life since I've gotten so good   
feedback on it. Expect part 2 of Balance of Chaos chapter 4 next week.  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page, The MegaRoad - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
My fanfiction.net account -  
http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=301246  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will also  
feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	6. Neither Bad nor Good, part 2

Finished: 2002-12-28  
  
Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma ½ has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma ½  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese"  
*Thoughts*  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
  
Chapter 4: Neither Bad nor Good  
  
Part 2  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
Nabiki's next day started with a heavy reminder of the previous one. The  
front of her right shoulder ached. Badly.  
  
Of course, considering what she had been forced to do, that was nothing  
strange. Ranma 'taught' her how to use her newly acquired gun. The word  
'taught' was not the one Nabiki was currently thinking of though. No,  
she was considering words like abuse and torture instead.  
  
She winced as she sat up in her bed. She tenderly massaged the bruised  
flesh on her shoulder with her left hand. Ranma made it quite clear that  
he would not tolerate a partner that could not handle a gun. Hence the  
entire last day was spent shooting at a wide variety of targets, taking  
the gun apart and putting it together, learning tactics and fire  
discipline. Sure the gun's recoil was light but having the stock firmly  
pressed to your shoulder for over three hours almost continuously firing  
the entire time, would tax almost anyone outside the military.  
  
She took in the surroundings of her new apartment a moment before  
deciding to get up. Yes, _her_ apartment. As soon as the ETSPP employed  
her, she decided that she just had to move out from the dojo. It didn't  
take her long to find something, although it was way too expensive yet  
too small for her taste. Still, considering her pay, she would not face  
any problems with the rent. Besides, she figured this was only a  
temporary solution before she found something better.  
  
Despite that, she couldn't help feeling a great deal of satisfaction  
that this was something that she owned. Sure, she did have a fair number  
of possessions, but for the most part she had to use all money she  
earned to make sure the dojo stayed in the black. It was not often she  
could find enough money to indulge herself. Of course that was when she  
still lived at the dojo.  
Just as she was getting up she heard someone knocking on the door. *Who  
could that be?* She absently thought as donned a robe, preparing to open  
the door.  
  
***  
  
As Ranma knocked on the door to Nabiki's apartment, he couldn't help  
thinking back on the previous day. He had been quite hard on the girl,  
yet it was necessary. The reason he worked alone was simple; since he  
was the most capable agent the bureau had, he quite obviously got the  
most dangerous missions. If or rather when a mission turned violent, any  
partners of his would just get caught in the crossfire. Still, orders  
where orders, and while he would admit it to no one, if he necessarily  
were to have a partner he could not think of many better than Nabiki.  
Their skills complemented each other quite well.  
  
Now that was a thought. When he was still Saotome he had a hard time  
understanding just what motivated the 'Ice Queen'. Of course, back then  
he couldn't figure out any women and, on occasion, still couldn't  
despite all his 2000 years of experience. *Women. Man's greatest  
mystery. * He thought with a small smile. Anyway, now he could much  
easier relate to the girl and just what she had to go through to keep  
her family and, more specifically, the dojo, afloat economically.  
  
Just as he finished that thought, the door opened. "Morning." He greeted  
Nabiki. It was clear from her posture that she had barley woken up.  
  
First her eyes widened briefly but soon turned back to their previous  
half-opened state. "M'ning" She grunted.  
  
"Damn! If I didn't know better I'd think I just saw a zombie or  
something." He said with a smirk.  
  
"Stow it." Nabiki grumbled.  
  
"What's the matter? Never heard of the early bird?"  
  
Nabiki rubbed her eyes. "Birds sit in the trees and sing. I on the other  
hand likes to sleep."  
  
"Nah, can't do that. Have ta' check out your new apartment. Besides you  
could probably use some of this." With that he flicked his right hand  
and a small bottle left it in high speed.  
  
Nabiki was a bit startled at the sudden appearance of an object heading  
right at her, yet she deftly caught it. She turned the small bottle in  
her hands and looked it over. It was small and brown with no label. "And  
this is?" She asked in suspicion.  
  
"Just something for your shoulder."  
  
Still somewhat suspicions, she turned of the lid and took a sniff of the  
white cream in the bottle.  
  
She wished she hadn't.  
  
The stench was unbearable. It was like someone had taken a metric ton of  
fish, stored it in a cellar a few months, added a few road kills, and  
then let a skunk douse it. She quickly put the lid back on and handed  
the jar back to Ranma.  
  
"No thanks, I think I can manage." She said, wrinkling her nose in  
disgust.  
  
Ranma blinked in surprise. "Huh, I never figured you would be one of  
those."  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "One of what? A person that doesn't want to  
smear the most disgusting smelling stuff I've ever encountered on my  
body?" She asked in irritation.  
  
"No, nothing like that." Ranma hastily defended. "It's just that this  
stuff works wonder. The only drawback is that it smells a little bad.  
However a very small percentage, with the right genetic makeup, thinks  
it smells like rotten fish, dead animals and skunks put together. Or so  
I'm told."  
  
"Oh." Nabiki blinked. "Well I'm not touching it." She continued with a  
shrug. She turned and walked back into the apartment. "Are you just  
going to stand there and ogle my back the entire day or are you going to  
come in?" She asked over her shoulder.  
  
"Why I never thought you would invite me!" Ranma replied in an overly  
cheerful tone as he stepped into the small apartment and closed the  
door.  
  
"What brings you here at this time?" Nabiki asked.  
  
"I told you." Ranma answered seriously. "I wanted to take a look at your  
apartment." He took a look around. "And from the look of things, you  
need more stuff."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I know already. It's not like I've had time to do it  
though. I have barely moved in you know." She said in slight irritation.  
It was too early for Ranma to be judging her.  
  
"Don't worry about it." Ranma said, probably sensing her irritation.  
"You should see my place. A bed, fridge, micro oven, computer, couch and  
table all surrounded by white."  
  
"Let me guess. You live in a subspace pocket, right?"  
  
"What can I say? It's handy to always have your apartment with you."  
  
"I'm soon beginning to think that you get your jollies from everything  
related to subspace." Nabiki smirked.  
  
"Oh, no! You found out my deepest secret! Well, one of them at least."  
Ranma mock wailed. "Anyway, since we are on the subject subspace  
pockets..." He paused and dug up an object from his pocket. It was a  
small box square shaped box. It looked very much like those used to  
hold... Nabiki's eyes widened in realization just as Ranma knelt before  
her and opened the small box.  
  
Nabiki was for once speechless. She just stood there gaping at the  
simple platinum ring with an emerald attached to it. Her brain was in  
turmoil from this sudden turn of events. Sure, she liked this Ranma  
better than the old one but marry him? It took her almost a minute  
before she found any words.  
  
"I-I don't know what to say..." She began before noticing Ranma's face.  
His grin stretched from ear to ear and his eyes had that strange glint  
that Nabiki had just begun to recognize as something to avoid. Ranma  
took the ring from the box and placed it on her ring finger.  
  
"There." He declared happily. "That's your personal subspace remote.  
Just use it as I showed you with the other's yesterday."  
  
Nabiki was about to slap him in the face, but she stopped herself just  
short of connecting. Ranma was not really at fault here. Sure what he  
did suggested a marriage proposal but it was her imagination that made  
it 'true'. Still, she was pretty miffed about his joke at her expense  
and some type of punishment was necessary. Remembering his apparent  
irritation from Chief's punishment, she redirected her hand and smacked  
the back of his head. Hard.  
  
"Hope you're happy, because I'm not!" She huffed.  
  
"Oh don't worry about me." Ranma managed between snickers. "That look on  
your face was priceless."  
  
Nabiki could easily relate to that. She remembered when she had played  
that cruel joke on Ranma, telling him that she loved him. The look on  
his face was more than priceless. Of course, this was probably Ranma's  
payback for just that and she couldn't help smiling a bit at his  
ingenuity. The old Ranma could never have pulled something like this  
off.  
  
She turned and went straight for the bathroom. "Now that you've had your  
fun, why don't you make yourself useful? I'm gonna take a shower and  
when I'm finished I want some kind of breakfast. If you make it good I  
might even consider letting this slide." She half-threatened, half-  
commanded just before she entered. She could see Ranma shrugging before  
going to the kitchen. Closing the door and she allowed herself a sigh of  
relief. Her hand was aching a bit from smacking his head. "Damn, what is  
he made of?" She absently muttered before turning her thoughts to more  
important matters. Like taking a shower.  
  
***  
  
Ranma proved to be a very able cook. Sure the breakfast he prepared was  
western style with scrambled eggs, bacon, coffee and toasted bread, but  
Nabiki was not one to complain. Though she did wonder a bit just where  
he did find those particular ingredients in her apartment...  
  
Just as she finished the breakfast she spoke up. "So, what new tortures  
are you going to subject me today?"  
  
"Actually we've got an assignment." Ranma said and Nabiki perked up  
visibly. "Don't get your hopes up just yet though. No offence but I'm  
still trying to find a way to go alone."  
  
Nabiki scowled. "And just why is my presence unwanted? Am I not good  
enough." She crossed her arms.  
  
Ranma snorted. " Frankly yes. This assignment is 'my type' so to speak.  
If something goes wrong I'm just about the only one able to handle it  
and if that were to happen, the only reminder of you would be a big red  
splotch on the ground."  
  
Nabiki's scowl lessened but she was still somewhat irritated. "Ok, so I  
can understand your reasoning. Just what is this assignment?"  
  
"Diplomacy." Ranma stated with a frown. Nabiki only raised a questioning  
eyebrow. "Someone in the command decided it would a great idea to give  
you some experience in the field by including you in this mission. 'Her  
primary skills are perfect for this mission.' They said. And I have to  
admit, you are a better negotiator than me."  
  
"The great Ranma admitting that someone is better than him in  
something?" Nabiki asked sarcastically.  
  
"There's always someone better. It's just the matter of finding them."  
Ranma said seriously.  
  
That was not the answer Nabiki was expecting. Not from Ranma anyway.  
"I'm beginning to think that 2000 years alive has been beneficial for  
you."  
  
Ranma grimaced slightly. "Yeah, well I would have preferred a more  
'normal' life. In any case, those idiots never bothered calculating the  
risks involved for a normal human in this mission. Let's just say it's  
more or less suicide for you to come with me."  
  
"Just what makes this mission so dangerous?"  
  
"I cannot really give you any details here. I do not detect any  
surveillance equipment but you can never be too sure." Ranma said  
looking around as if trying to find something out of the ordinary.  
  
Nabiki was somewhat unnerved by Ranma's continuous scanning of her  
apartment, since his eyes changed colour to a deep blue as he did it.  
"I'll just have to wait and find out as we go then? Not the best plan if  
I may voice my opinion. Especially since this is a sensitive diplomacy  
mission. Besides, I hate to be in the dark and you know it."  
  
Ranma stopped his scanning and turned to Nabiki. "True. That is a _very_  
bad plan. However..." He got a slightly ponderous look. "...I may have a  
solution."  
  
"Which is?" Nabiki asked hesitantly.  
  
"Well I was planning to visit the Nekohanten after I visited you and  
after that, come pick you up just before the assignment started. I  
figure three weeks is more than enough for Cologne to make the decision  
between alliance and oblivion." He gave Nabiki a small grin. "However,  
if you want to, you can come with me right now and before going to the  
Nekohanten, we'll make a stop in one of my subspace pockets for a full  
briefing."  
  
"Works for me." Nabiki said with a shrug.  
  
"Great!" Ranma exclaimed, grabbing her arm and running to a portal.  
  
*I should have known he would do that...* Nabiki thought just as she  
entered the portal, flailing like a sail behind Ranma.  
  
***  
  
Nerima - the marital arts capital of the world. As such it had seen more  
than it's fair share of strange things. The blue, swirling portal that  
opened just in front of the Nekohanten was therefore nothing that the  
general crowd took notice of.  
  
"...and remember to switch to 'Lucky'-rounds if anything happens." Ranma  
spoke over his shoulder as he left the portal.  
  
"Yeah, yeah. I know already!" Came the irritated voice of Nabiki as she  
stepped out of the portal as well. "Maybe I should bring some charms  
while I'm at it." She said sarcastically.  
  
"Nah, not potent enough." Ranma replied absently. "Here we are. Truly  
'tis establishment is a pinnacle of the Chinese food culture."  
  
"Getting in touch with your 'Kuno' side?" Nabiki asked with a smirk.  
  
"Well, what do you expect? We are in Nerima after all." Ranma pointed  
out with a smirk of his own.  
  
Both of them entered the Nekohanten and took a look around. There were  
very few customers present although that would soon change since the  
clock neared lunchtime. "Ey, Cologne!" Ranma called into the kitchen.  
  
"Yes, just a moment." Cologne's voice answered. A minute later she  
walked out from the kitchen area. "So what can I do for you today, Son-  
in-law?" She asked with a smile.  
  
"Well for starters you could stop with the Son-in-law, comments." Ranma  
answered with a hint of irritation in his voice. "Say, where is  
Shampoo?"  
  
Cologne took a deep sigh. "I do not know her current whereabouts. She  
went out early this morning just like every other morning for the past  
two weeks. Mousse is out trailing her but has not had any success. Of  
course that's not strange considering his disability."  
  
"I gather she is depressed?" Ranma asked concerned.  
  
Cologne raised an eyebrow. "Very. Why do you care anyway?"  
  
Ranma snorted and crossed his arms. "Just because I'm a cold bastard,  
doesn't mean I don't care. I've had my fair share of depressions so I  
know what she is going through."  
  
Cologne sighed again. "That's good to hear. I gather you are here for my  
answer?"  
  
"Yes, I figure you've had enough time to make the decision."  
  
"Very well, I accept the offer and I will sign any papers and record any  
statements you want to make it official." She said, taking a glance at  
Nabiki.  
  
Neither Ranma nor Nabiki missed the glance. "Actually, I'm not here for  
that." Nabiki said.  
  
"Oh?" Cologne raised both eyebrows. "Just why are you here then?" Her  
eyes widened suddenly as she spotted the ring on Nabiki's finger.  
"So..." She began, narrowing her eyes dangerously at the both of them.  
"...is that what I think it is?" She said pointing at Nabiki's hand.  
  
Ranma followed Cologne's gaze and instantly burst out laughing. It took  
a second more for Nabiki to make the connection but she too found the  
situation funny. "Stop that." She lightly punched Ranma in his shoulder  
while trying to contain her own snickers. Of course Ranma just laughed  
harder. "You're impossible!" Nabiki said in mock exasperation, before  
turning to Cologne. "This ring..." She held up her hand so Cologne could  
get a better look. "...is actually a technological device."  
  
Cologne's dangerous look lessened somewhat. "Really? Forgive me, but  
somehow I don't really trust you on that." She said suspiciously.  
  
"She's telling you the truth." Ranma spoke up while drying his tears.  
"Basically, that ring does the same thing as Mousse with his hidden  
weapons. As for what was so funny, well let's just say it's a private  
joke." He finished with a small smile directed at Nabiki.  
  
Cologne's suspicion had now turned into a healthy curiosity. "Hidden  
weapons through technology? How about showing me?"  
  
Ranma glanced briefly at Nabiki silently trying to tell her that this  
was a perfect opportunity to practice using the ring. She quickly got  
the hint and used the ring to call her newly acquired gun. Seemingly  
from nowhere, the firearm appeared in her hands.  
  
"How interesting." Cologne murmured. "I'm sorry for jumping conclusions.  
I should have known better, especially since it's you I'm dealing with."  
Cologne said sincerely bowing slightly in apology.  
  
"Heh, that's one of the stories of my life." Ranma answered cryptically.  
"Don't worry though. We all make mistakes, especially the younger  
generation." He grinned.  
  
"Now that's something I could get used to. Far better than being  
referred to as 'old ghoul'." Cologne chuckled. She quickly sobered and  
turned more serious. "Anyway, I accept your offer to form an alliance  
between you and the Joketsuzoku Amazons and therefore release you from  
the kiss of marriage." She gave him a sad smile. "I never could have  
guessed that it would turn out like this. I would have loved to truly  
call you son-in-law and see your children, but unfortunately that is a  
lost dream now. You truly are as wild and chaotic as both your names  
say."  
  
Ranma scratched the back of his head. "You know, I've never thought of  
that before. Heh, Naomi would have found that hilarious."  
  
"Naomi?" Both Nabiki and Cologne queried.  
  
"That's the story of how I got the name Wildman. Maybe I'll tell you  
sometime." Ranma replied absently. He held forth his right hand to  
Cologne. "So we got a deal?" He asked.  
  
"Deal." Cologne answered and took his offered hand, shaking it firmly.  
  
"Good." Ranma said with a sincere smile. "To tell you the truth, I could  
never have brought myself to wipe out your village in cold blood. You  
remind me to much of the Eldar for that."  
  
"I suspected as much, but I didn't dare to call your bluff." Cologne  
said, with the same sad smile as earlier. "Who or what are the Eldar  
though?" She asked hesitantly.  
  
"The Eldar is another long story." Ranma replied as he took notice of  
her apparent sadness. "Tell you what, if you want to, you can still call  
me son-in-law."  
  
Cologne's eyes widened in surprise. "You would let this old woman have  
that pleasure?" Ranma only nodded in answer, a smile adorning his lips.  
Cologne's eyes misted over and a single tear made its way down her  
cheek. "Heh, look at me. I must be getting soft." She wiped the tear  
away.  
  
Nabiki couldn't help smiling a little at the scene. Ranma may have  
changed greatly, to the point of almost being another person, but he  
still retained some of his trademark features. His infuriating smirk was  
one of those things and his strange yet often overwhelming caring of  
other people was another one.  
  
At that moment, the bells at the door jingled a bit, signifying a new  
person entering the restaurant. This person happened to be Shampoo,  
almost dragging herself through the entrance. The normally bubbly and  
cheerful girl was strangely subdued. Her entire posture screamed  
depression and her eyes seemed to have lost almost all life. "Shampoo is  
back, great-grandmother." She announced without any of her usual  
enthusiasm, and she did not even bother to look around.  
  
Cologne could only feel a great deal of sadness for the young girl.  
Shampoo had to snap out of her depression, otherwise she might end up  
hurting her body and mind irreparably. *Hmm, well he did say I could  
call him that...* Cologne grinned as a plan took form in her mind.  
"Welcome back Shampoo." She began. "Guess what, son-in-law is here now."  
  
Shampoo's eyes lit up and she quickly scanned the room after her wayward  
Airen. Finding her target standing in her 10-meter glomp range, she  
instantly performed an Amazon Glomp (tm). "Airen come back for Shampoo!"  
She almost screamed in happiness.  
  
Both Nabiki and Cologne couldn't help chuckling a bit at the sight of  
Ranma, inter-dimensional bad ass, getting squeezed to near death by a  
girl.  
  
"Ranma change his mind after all, yes?" Shampoo asked, hanging by his  
neck.  
  
Ranma gazed down in Shampoo's eyes noticing how full of life they once  
more were. *And here we go again...* He thought sadly. *Another life  
deeply affected by my presence and therefore hurt...* He extricated  
himself from Shampoo's death grip, set her down on the floor and took a  
deep breath before he spoke up. "Listen Shampoo..." He began, staring  
straight into her eyes. "...I have not changed my mind. I am only here  
to conclude my business with Cologne. "  
  
"But, but..." Shampoo stuttered. Ranma put one of his fingers on her  
lips tenderly, effectively silencing her.  
  
"No buts, Shampoo." Ranma said in a commanding yet soft voice. "What you  
forget is that I am not the Ranma you know. I am an altogether different  
person, Ranma Wildman to be exact."  
  
"But you Shampoo's airen! Law say so!" Shampoo tried desperately.  
  
"True, but that law does not affect me anymore. Cologne has accepted the  
offer of an alliance between me and the Joketsuzoku amazons, hence  
nullifying your claim on me."  
  
Shampoo looked like she was going to break down and bawl her eyes out  
but instead, her face suddenly hardened and her entire body spoke of  
determination. "Oh." She forced out. "That too, too bad. But let Shampoo  
make Ranma delicious ramen before he go?" She said in her usual bubbly  
voice and before Ranma could respond she ran off to the kitchen.  
  
Ranma looked at Cologne and raised a questioning eyebrow. Cologne on the  
other hand only shrugged, waiting expectantly to see just what the girl  
was planning to do.  
  
In a matter of minutes, Shampoo emerged from the kitchen, each hand  
holding one steaming bowl of ramen. "Here, two bowls of too, too  
delicious..." Ranma cut her of as he snatched both bowls from her hands.  
  
  
"Wow! One bowl of ramen-potion for me, and one bowl of ramen-poison for  
Nabiki? You shouldn't have!" Ranma exclaimed happily and deposited one  
of the bowls in Nabiki's hands.  
  
Nabiki was slightly taken aback from Ranma's words. Poison in her food?  
She looked up at Ranma's grinning face and noticed that mischievous  
glint in his eyes that she just had begun learning to recognize and  
avoid. However, seeing that glint right now was strangely reassuring  
though and she decided to play along in Ranma's plan.  
  
"Actually," She began. "I think I want the potion instead."  
  
"Oh?" Ranma asked in mock surprise. "Well who am I to stop you. Let's  
switch."  
  
By now Shampoo had recovered from her surprise, and rushed forward,  
intercepting Ranma's arm. "No!" She yelled. "Ramen only..." Again Ranma  
cut her of.  
  
"Dang! Sorry Nabiki but Shampoo apparently wants me to have potion."  
  
Nabiki shrugged, feigning indifference. "Works for me."  
  
Shampoo growled and snatched the bowl from Nabiki's hands. This time she  
didn't even have time to begin talking. "Oh I'm sorry." Ranma exclaimed.  
"I didn't realize you wanted the poison for yourself."  
  
"NO!" Shampoo screamed, shoving the bowl she held into Ranma's hands.  
"Is no poison in either bowl. Only love-potion..." Her eyes widened and  
she put her hands to her mouth as if trying to stop the words that  
slipped out of her. Realizing that her plan had failed miserably, she  
turned and began running to the kitchen.  
  
Ranma however, deftly intercepted her and grabbed one of her arms. She  
instantly whirled around, and tried to slap him. Ranma only grabbed her  
other arm and pulled her in close to his body, effectively immobilizing  
her. Shampoo violently thrashed in his grip but to no avail. After a  
minute she calmed down and began crying. "W-why?" She managed to get out  
between her sobs. "Why, d-don't you want to be Shampoo's airen?"  
  
Ranma released his grip on her and held her at arms length while looking  
deep into her eyes. "Because, as I said earlier, I am not your Ranma. I  
have lived over 2000 years, seen horrors you couldn't even dream of in  
your own nightmares, killed an immeasurable number of people,  
experienced tragedies beyond what's comprehendible. I don't know how I  
managed to get through it all but I do know that I am forever changed.  
Hell, I even consider myself insane sometimes."  
  
Shampoo opened her mouth to speak but Ranma continued before she could  
say anything. "You'll probably say something about that it doesn't  
matter to you, that you don't care about the risk inherent to being  
around me. However you should care. If I am insane, then it isn't that  
farfetched that I potentially could lash out in anger against those who  
are around me. I know that I have done it before. Just whom do you think  
will be caught in the crossfire of my anger? You? Your family? Your  
entire tribe? Gambling with your own life is one thing but hundreds of  
other's as well? No, I don't think so. And I certainly do not think  
Cologne will approve of that either."  
  
"No, I will certainly not!" Cologne spoke up. "Child, I know it is hard  
but you have to let Ranma go." She finished in a softer voice.  
  
A few more tears ran down Shampoo's cheeks, yet Ranma dried all of them  
away as fast as they appeared. "Find another man Shampoo. I know there  
are still many out there strong enough to be worthy of you. Hell, I  
might be able to find one for you. However, if I ever hear that you  
think Mousse is worthy, I'll come right back and beat your sorry butt so  
hard that you'll not be able to marry anyone other than Ryoga in his  
cursed form." He mock threatened.  
  
That managed to crack a smile from Shampoo. "No worry Ranma. Neither  
Mousse nor pig-boy ever be Shampoo's airen." She answered, her voice  
somewhat happier than before.  
  
"Good girl. I'm honoured to know you and be your friend and if it is of  
any consolation, I will probably visit your tribe quite frequently from  
now on." He leaned in and kissed her tenderly on the forehead. "For now  
though, it is good bye."  
  
Ranma released her and quickly exited the restaurant before Shampoo  
could think of anything more to do. He motioned for Nabiki to follow and  
soon they were both a block away from the Nekohanten.  
  
"So..." Nabiki began as they walked. "...how does it feel to finally be  
free of the kiss of marriage?"  
  
Ranma stopped and sighed. "Not much different actually. I mean it's not  
like I would have gone through with it anyway and the amazons couldn't  
have done a thing about it."  
  
"Well, that's true... By the way, I think that was the first time I ever  
seen you treat Cologne with respect. I also liked your bluff with  
Shampoo. Nice touch really." Nabiki said  
  
Ranma looked at Nabiki as if she had grown another head. "What are you  
talking about? Not showing Cologne respect? And besides, who said I was  
bluffing?"  
  
That got Nabiki a bit nervous. Was he joking or was he serious? "You  
know, that's not very reassuring." She said, still not sure if Ranma was  
trying to pull her leg.  
  
"It wasn't supposed to be." Ranma replied as he opened a portal. Without  
another word he stepped right in.  
  
"What was that all about?" Nabiki asked herself as she followed Ranma.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna had a headache. After her little 'possessed' episode earlier she  
had searched for Ranma with the time gates almost 24 hours straight. He  
had proved to be almost impossible to get a glimpse off, and she was  
almost beginning to suspect that he somehow knew how to disrupt the  
scrying power of the time gates. It was either that or he being an icon  
for chaos incarnate, but Setsuna was certain that the later option was  
not the case. Or so she told herself.  
  
Just as she was about to give up she finally managed to get a glimpse of  
his presence. Desperately holding on to that vision she struggled to get  
more information, yet she was not able to get anything worthwhile. With  
one final 'pull' she managed to get the time gate to do what she wanted.  
She almost wished it hadn't.  
  
***  
  
Both Ranma and Nabiki stepped out of another portal, this time in a dark  
alley. The reason for this was quite obvious; they weren't in Nerima any  
longer so they couldn't count on everyone to just overlook or ignore a  
phenomenon such as a blue swirling portal opening up in the middle of  
the street.  
  
"So, where are we heading?" Nabiki asked, trying to break the awkward  
silence between them.  
  
Ranma only grunted and inclined his head to the right. He swiftly  
started walking in said direction and Nabiki had trouble keeping his  
brisk pace. After a couple of blocks he abruptly stopped just outside of  
a Café making Nabiki collide in his back.  
  
"This is it." He said while looking around. He checked his chronometer.  
"Guess we're half an hour early."  
  
"What do we do until then, just stand here and watch all who pass by?"  
Nabiki suggested sarcastically, while rubbing her nose after her little  
close contact with Ranma's back.  
  
Ranma turned to her and smirked slightly. "As enticing as that sounds, I  
think it would be better to take a 'coffee break'." He said, jerking a  
thumb in the direction of the Café.  
  
"If you're paying, sure." Nabiki shrugged.  
  
Ranma barked a short laugh. "Heh! You know you're quite predictable  
sometimes."  
  
Nabiki shrugged again. "What can I say? Old habits die hard."  
  
"True, it's the same old, same old." Ranma said, trying to look and  
sound old and wise, and failing miserably.  
  
Nabiki couldn't help laughing at his stupid yet incredibly comical  
expression. Inwardly she was glad that he was back to his normal  
behaviour. Him being all quiet and morose, quite frankly scared her.  
"C'mon you 'old timer'. Let's see if that sweet tooth of yours still  
works. Of course that's assuming you still got teeth. "  
  
"You ungrateful little whelp! I'll have you know that when I was your  
age I had to get up from bed one hour before I went to sleep." Ranma  
continued, his face still scrunched up in a parody of old age.  
  
"Suuure grandpa." Nabiki laughed. "Whatever you say."  
  
Ranma dropped the expression and joined Nabiki in her laughter. However  
his face suddenly hardened and he turned to the right, looking almost  
straight down the street.  
  
Nabiki couldn't help noticing his sudden change. "What's wrong?" She  
asked in curiosity.  
  
Ranma didn't even grunt in answer and Nabiki's curiosity changed into  
concern. Suddenly a shimmer could be seen on Ranma's forehead and the  
metal plate she had seen earlier, when he wore his armour, faded into  
existence.  
  
Ranma just stood there in silence for a minute not giving of even the  
slightest sound. Then he broke the silence with a small "Hmm."  
  
"What's wrong?" Nabiki tried again.  
  
This time Ranma decided to acknowledge her. "I don't know exactly. I  
just detected a couple of signatures that I haven't sensed before. Which  
is strange, since this area was one of the first I scanned."  
  
"Well, doesn't that just mean you missed them then?" Nabiki suggested  
helpfully.  
  
"Probably, but not very likely since they should have popped up in a  
later scan..." Ranma answered absently. "I guess there's only one  
choice. I have to check it out personally." He said with a shrug.  
  
Nabiki sighed. She had actually looked forward to sitting down with an  
ice cream. "Ok, let's go then."  
  
"Nah, you don't need to come with me for this one. It's just a simple  
scan after all."  
  
Nabiki blinked. "Say, are you trying to leave me behind?"  
  
Ranma turned and smiled at her. "Actually yes, but that's only because  
you can't perform the actual scan." He pointed at the metal plate  
attached to his forehead. "You need one of these first."  
  
"You don't got any spares?" Nabiki asked.  
  
"I do, but I don't think you want to perform the necessary operation to  
get it working." With that, two round columns rose from the right and  
left edge of the plate as if they were unscrewing themselves. Ranma took  
the plate in his left hand and used the right to brush away his hair.  
The sight that presented itself made Nabiki slightly nauseous.  
  
In his temples there were two round markings, one on each side. You  
didn't have to be a rocket scientist to understand that the columns that  
unscrewed themselves from the metal plate were actually attached to  
Ranma's flesh.  
  
"Put that back on!" Nabiki quickly demanded.  
  
Ranma obliged without protest and soon the plate was once more attached  
to his forehead. Of course his trademark smirk never left his face  
during the entire 'demonstration'. "Gruesome, isn't it?" He asked,  
amusement obvious in his voice.  
  
"Very!" Nabiki responded forcefully. "How the hell did you get that?  
Another thing from the crossing?"  
  
"Sort of. The round markings you saw on my temples are actually two of  
the brain implants I have. While researching about the implants I  
discovered that the two in front works as sensors. I later decided to  
capitalize on that ability, therefore creating a sensor package  
compatible with the implants."  
  
"Doesn't it hurt when it... well 'screws' itself into place."  
  
"Oh yeah, a lot in fact. That's why I normally never take it off."  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "You never take it off? How come it's not  
visible then? I mean I thought it was some kind of subspace pocket  
gimmick."  
  
Ranma let out a short laugh. "You know, you make it sound like I use  
subspace pockets for everything. As for why it's not visible, well I use  
a combination of bending light and holographic projectors to conceal  
it."  
  
"Great, more technological mumbo-jumbo." Nabiki shook her head. "And you  
do use subspace for everything you do."  
  
Ranma only shrugged. "What can I say? It's handy. Anyway, I'll go check  
these new signatures out and you stay here and meet the contact if she's  
early. By the way, her name is Mara if you're wondering." With that  
Ranma leaped onto the nearest roof and started roof hopping, Nerima-  
style, towards the direction he had looked in earlier.  
  
"Oh, well." Nabiki said to herself. "Guess I have to wait here for a  
while. Time for an ice cream. Too bad I have to pay for it myself."  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
Ranma and Nabiki are on their first assignment, and Ranma has finished  
tying up all loose ends concerning the amazons. But what's this about a  
diplomacy mission? And with Mara as a contact? Also let's not forget the  
unknown energy signatures. Just who or what are they? Find out in the  
next chapter, which also is the conclusion of chapter 4.  
  
BTW I'm sorry for not updating the last week as I had promised but  
Christmas got in the way. Of course the old NES I got my hands on also  
had something to do with it... gotta love nostalgia!  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page, The MegaRoad - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
My fanfiction.net account -  
http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=301246  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will also  
feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


	7. Neither Bad nor Good, part 3

Finished: 2003-01-04  
  
Standard disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fan fiction except  
for the idea behind it and even that is mostly blatantly stolen from a  
multitude of sources. And if you don't like that, then SUE ME! Uhm, why  
are you all staring at me like that? No, it was a joke! Really! No,  
don't take my computer, no, not my videogames, no, not my cat!!!  
NOOOOOOOO!!!! *Sounds of a man being stripped of everything he own can  
be heard. * (Does anyone know that sound effect BTW?)  
  
Timelines: Everything in the canon Ranma ½ has happened in this fan  
fiction with the exception of the Saffron incident. Only the Ranma ½  
reference in this fan fiction will use a modified timeline. Any other  
references will really just use the characters without any complex plots  
and/or situations.  
  
Age rating: If you can understand all the crap I'm spouting then you are  
definitely old enough to read this fan fiction.  
  
"Japanese"  
*Thoughts*  
~Sound effects~  
  
Kenneth Lönnberg aka Macross_VF1 proudly presents:  
  
Balance of Chaos  
  
Chapter 4: Neither Bad nor Good  
  
Part 3  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
It took slightly less than 5 minutes for Ranma to reach his destination.  
It was a big shrine in a slightly isolated place. A customary stonewall  
surrounded the entire compound in an attempt to keep people out.  
However, to Ranma such a wall was just a bonus. With a quick leap he  
perched himself on the top of the wall, carefully looking around.  
  
It didn't take him long to find the signals. In the kitchen he could  
clearly see a girl with brown hair that could very well have been  
Kasumi's twin and in the backyard young a girl in black hair was working  
on some kind of robot. Besides the visible ones, there were two more  
signals inside the house. One was nothing special, but the other had the  
same strange signature as the two girls.  
  
*Hmm, why did these people register on the scanner? * He thought to  
himself. He flipped down the built in visor in his forehead sensor and  
started going through the scanning process. *Nothing on the infrared,  
heat or magnetic scans... Strange aura, but not conclusive evidence of  
anything... Big energy stores...* He paused and flipped a mental switch  
to identify energy types. The scanner quickly identified the type of  
energy.  
  
Mana.  
  
He put the visor away and narrowed his eyes. "Deities..." he almost  
growled out.  
  
He turned to leave but a voice called out and stopped him.  
  
"Hey, who are you?"  
  
He turned back his head to see the black haired girl looking  
suspiciously at him.  
  
"No one you should be concerned of little girl." Ranma said, turning to  
leave again. He didn't want to be anywhere near these deities,  
especially the brown-haired one. The calm and peaceful ones was usually  
the most dangerous ones in his experience.  
  
Now if Ranma had known the girl, he would have known that he had just  
put his foot in his mouth, big time.  
  
"Oh no you don't. Neo-Skuld bomb!" The black-haired girl called out and  
threw an object at Ranma.  
  
Ranma did have his back turned to the girl when she threw the object,  
but with battle-honed reflexes it was child's play to dodge it. He  
casually back flipped from his point on the wall down into the yard.  
While in the air, he turned and summoned his armour, making him fully  
combat ready when he touched the ground.  
  
The girl was readying another bomb to throw, but Ranma quickly took the  
initiative by summoning a gun and firing at the bomb. The look on the  
girls face when he shot the bomb out of her hand was priceless. Ranma  
smiled evilly and cracked his knuckles.  
  
"So that's how you want to play it? Oh well, if you want a beating that  
much, I'll be happy to comply. Besides, it was a long time ago since I  
had the chance to kill some deities. I think I'll enjoy this."  
  
The girl's eyes widened, first at his deity comment and secondly when he  
so happily declared her death. She didn't even had time to scream before  
she found herself flying through the air with incredible pain in her  
stomach. She landed some 10 meters back, almost instantly falling  
unconscious.  
  
Ranma crossed the distance to the girl with a small sonic boom following  
him. Just as he connected his fist to his gut, he heard several gasps  
from the house. It was quickly followed by two shouts of "Skuld!" He  
turned his head to see the girl in brown hair and a guy that he had not  
previously seen run towards this "Skuld"-girl.  
  
*That's the third signal. * He thought. *Now where's the fou...* He  
didn't have time to finish the thought as he quickly threw himself to  
the side, dodging some kind of magic projectile.  
  
He looked in the direction where the magic had came from and found the  
fourth and final signal. It was an absolutely stunning woman with white  
hair and she literally oozed the word sexy. This was something Ranma  
could deal with. After having dealt with and killed Slaanesh, the god of  
perverse pleasure, an abnormally sexy woman was easy to ignore. Of  
course her trying to "fry his sorry carcass", as she put it, made it all  
easier.  
  
Ranma's previous evil smile turned into a maniacal grin and again he  
charged using his suit's boosters, breaking the sound barrier once  
again.  
  
He punched the woman in the face, breaking her concentration and  
dispelling the spell in the process. She fell to the ground nursing her  
broken nose. Ranma held the gun only inches from her face, letting her  
get a good look down the barrel of his gun. She gulped nervously and  
froze.  
  
"Please, give me a reason to kill you." Ranma said while grinning like a  
mad man.  
  
"Stop it!" The brown haired girl called out. "Why are you doing this?"  
  
Ranma only continued to grin. "Why don't you wake the little brat and  
ask her? Besides it's not very fun to kill someone unconscious."  
  
Both the guy and the brown-haired girl flinched visibly to Ranma's  
comment on 'fun'.  
  
"Don't you dare touch her!" The white-haired woman growled while slowly  
standing up.  
  
Ranma snorted in contempt. "Like you can stop me."  
  
"Hey I recognize you!" The guy exclaimed. "You helped the Sailor Senshi  
a couple of weeks ago."  
  
"Yeah, I did. What's it to you?"  
  
"If you helped them, that would make you a good guy, right?"  
  
Ranma's grin changed into a frown. "What is it with this dimension?  
Doesn't anyone know more than black and white? Yes I did help the  
Sailors, but only because for it proved to be most beneficial option  
available for the moment."  
  
The guy obviously wasn't expecting that answer. He hesitated a bit  
before continuing. "Uhm, you know, these girls are goddesses..."  
  
"I know that." Ranma cut him off.  
  
Another unexpected answer. The guy looked very confused when he  
continued "Why are you attacking them if you know that?"  
  
"Isn't that obvious? I want to kill the friggin' bastards for attacking  
me. Damn, how stupid can one get? " Ranma asked no one in particular,  
his voice dripping with contempt.  
  
The poor guy could probably not be more confused. "But, but, but..." He  
stammered, searching for words but finding none.  
  
Ranma decided to take pity on the babbling man and 'educate' him.  
"Listen here you foolish Mon-Keigh. Gods are nothing but a bunch of  
delusional hypocrites that think they are better than mortals with their  
thrice-damned holier-than-thou attitude. The only problem is that  
without mortals, or rather believers, they can't exist. A god without  
believers is a dead god, to put it simple. Mortals create gods, not the  
other way around." His grin returned in full force. "Besides, it's wrong  
to talk in terms of gods and mortals, since they can be killed. I have  
personally seen to the demise of at least a dozen gods."  
  
As he spoke, the silver haired woman decided to take advantage of his  
momentary distraction. She tensed and readied herself for another attack  
and... "Why, how kind!" Ranma suddenly exclaimed, once again pressing  
his gun dangerously close to her face, yet without watching what he was  
doing. "So you want to help me reach another dozen? You only had to  
ask." The silver haired woman froze up, sweating nervously. That gun was  
huge!  
  
Ranma was just about to press the trigger when the Kasumi look-alike  
decided to speak up. Until now she had only attended the black-haired  
girl. "Please stop this." She called out, tears pouring down her cheeks.  
  
Ranma turned his head, his face displaying an almost bored expression.  
"Give me one good reason." He said, his voice full of hate.  
  
The brown-haired girl gulped. "I- I don't know why you hate us, but  
please believe me when I say that we are not like that. Give me a chance  
and I will prove it to you..."  
  
"So you can backstab me? No thanks!" Ranma snorted. He summoned another  
gun and trained it at the crying girl. As he was pulling the trigger, he  
once again was interrupted, this time by the guy. "NO!" He yelled and  
put himself in Ranma's line of fire, effectively blocking Ranma's view  
of the girl.  
  
Ranma raised an eyebrow. "And just what do you think you are doing?" He  
asked in irritation.  
  
"I will not let you hurt Belldandy!" The guy called out in defiance.  
  
"Step aside boy, you don't know what you are dealing with here." Ranma  
commanded. "They are considered illegal aliens since they and/or their  
office has not decided to contact and/or formulate a treaty with the UN  
ETSPP bureau yet." He paused to let that sink in. "And as an agent of  
said bureau, I have the authority to remove these people from Earth  
territory as they clearly represent a big threat. Of course, if I report  
there were complications and I had to meet force with force then  
everyone will consider the case closed. I like happy endings and short  
reports." Ranma grinned evilly.  
  
The guy hesitated but then a fire suddenly started burning in his eyes  
as his determination returned. "I don't care!" He screamed. "I love  
her!" The fire instantly vanished and was replaced with embarrassment as  
he realized his own words.  
  
"Oh is that so? Heh! You're quite pathetic aren't you?" Ranma started to  
chuckle. "Of course, I've been that pathetic as well..." He said  
cryptically. His guns faded away and he turned to leave. "Consider  
yourself warned." He called over his shoulder. "You better register  
yourself at the ETSPP bureau ASAP or tell your superiors to do it for  
you. Otherwise I will not be held responsible for my actions." With that  
he jumped over the wall and vanished from sight.  
  
***  
  
Nabiki looked at her watch again. It wasn't like Ranma was late or  
anything, he still had five minutes left before he needed to show up.  
However, even though she was loath to admit it, his presence was  
reassuring and right now she could use some of that.  
  
The reason for this was the contact, Mara. Nabiki had barely gotten her  
ice cream before Mara knocked her on the shoulder and introduced herself  
to the somewhat surprise Nabiki. Of course Nabiki had encountered  
stranger things living in Nerima so someone showing up almost from thin  
air was nothing special. After the introduction both girls had made some  
small talk, mostly consisting of Mara asking questions about Ranma, some  
of them quite personal, even going as far as suggesting Nabiki had 'done  
the deed' with Ranma. The former Ice Queen of Furinkan wasn't even fazed  
by those questions and they soon turned the entire conversation to a  
game of verbal skills, each of them trying to outdo the other.  
  
However, as much as Nabiki enjoyed bantering with a skilled 'opponent',  
there was something in the back of her mind that told her something was  
wrong with Mara. Yet at the same time she was also inexplicably drawn to  
the other woman, like it was some perverse way of attraction. It was  
strange really, because with the exception of her extravagant clothes  
and peculiar facial tattoos, Mara didn't look any more special than your  
average Joe, at least not to Nabiki. What really unnerved her were the  
eyes though. It wasn't hard to imagine that Mara's steady and keen gaze  
was very much how a predator would look upon a potential prey.  
  
As if sensing her unease Mara slightly tilted her head and narrowed her  
eyes at Nabiki. The appraising and almost condescending look somehow  
irritated Nabiki. However before she could think further on the subject  
Mara spoke up. "I'll be damned. You can feel me, right?"  
  
Nabiki lost her irritation in a heartbeat at the unexpected question.  
"Huh?" She replied intelligently.  
  
"I meant exactly what I said, you can feel me." Mara repeated.  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "Care to explain that in better detail?"  
  
"You have a feeling of some sort that you don't get around other  
people."  
  
The other eyebrow came up. "That's correct actually. How did you know  
that and more importantly why does your presence cause this?"  
  
A small smile formed on Mara's lips. "I don't know the specifics of just  
how it works but I do know that it is not many mortals that have the  
ability. As for how I knew it, well it I didn't really. However I have  
met other people with this ability and they always show a distinct  
behaviour pattern. Of course I didn't expect it from you though. You are  
really too devious for something like that."  
  
"Thanks for the compliment." Nabiki replied with some sarcasm. "By the  
way, what are you talking about mortals for? Don't tell me you're  
immortal or something."  
  
Mara's smile got wider, taking on an almost predatory quality. "You're  
almost right. I just happen to be a demon."  
  
Nabiki's eyes narrowed. "Demon?" She asked, disbelief evident in her  
voice.  
  
"Sure thing!" Mara exclaimed and struck a pose. "Demoness! First class!  
  
Nabiki couldn't help laughing at the silly exclamation and besides she  
had experienced magical curses and ki attacks. To accept the existence  
of demons were not a hard thing to do consider all the insanity in  
Nerima. "All right, I believe you. So I can feel demons then?"  
  
"Correct." Mara smiled. "Although as I said, I have a hard time  
understanding why. Holy or innocent people are the usual carriers of the  
ability. Hell, if I didn't know better I would take you for another  
demon."  
  
Nabiki laughed some more. "Well then I understand why you called me  
devious. I guess that's got to be a compliment coming from a demon."  
  
"Yup! Sure you don't want to sign up for our side." The demoness asked  
with an innocent look (As innocent as she could muster anyway) and held  
forth a pen and something that looked like a contract.  
  
"Not today. I happen to like my soul and all that." Nabiki politely  
declined.  
  
"Damn!" Mara mock-cursed. "Oh well, can't have everything." She finished  
with a shrug.  
  
"So you're a demon..." Nabiki continued. "Are you some kind of succubus  
or something then." She asked.  
  
Mara gave her a strange look. "No, but I do know a couple. Anyway, what  
makes you think that?"  
  
"The questions about Ranma." Nabiki stated.  
  
Mara's eyes lit up in understanding and she began to chuckle. "Oh, no I  
just happen to have a little personal interest in Ranma."  
  
Nabiki only raised an eyebrow in response.  
  
"C'mon you know what I'm talking about. I'm sure there is almost no girl  
that wouldn't give both her arms to be with Ranma and that includes  
hell. I mean even you have to be at least a little interested if he  
lives up to his name?"  
  
Now it was Nabiki's turn to chuckle. "Actually I have at least a partial  
answer to that one."  
  
Mara's eyes got wide. "Really! Tell me what you know! Please?" She  
pleaded.  
  
Nabiki only laughed harder. "Oh well, consider it a freebie." With a  
smile she grabbed her purse and opened it. After digging around for a  
few seconds she found a photo and presented it to Mara.  
  
Mara quickly snatched the photo from Nabiki's hands. She looked it over  
for a second or two and practically started drooling. "Awesome..." She  
managed to get out despite her trance. She shook herself out of her  
self-inflicted coma and stuffed the photo inside her clothes for  
safekeeping. Which was just as well since Ranma entered the shop at that  
moment.  
  
He took a quick glance around, and then walked straight up to the table  
where Nabiki and Mara were seated. He greeted Nabiki with a small nod  
before turning his attention to the other girl. "Ah, you must be Mara."  
He stretched out his right hand, a smile on his lips.  
  
"Yup, that's me." Mara smiled back, took the offered hand and shook it  
firmly. "I've heard a lot about you and I must say that it's a pleasure  
to meet you in person." Mara almost purred seductively.  
  
Ranma only chuckled. "Sorry, that doesn't work on me."  
  
"I didn't expect it to." Mara shrugged. "By the way, Morrigan sends her  
thanks. Your directions apparently were spot on."  
  
"Glad to be of help." Ranma smiled sincerely. "Anyway are you ready to  
go?" He asked Nabiki.  
  
"Yeah I've paid for the ice cream already but tell me one thing first."  
Nabiki answered.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Why are you in your armour?"  
  
Ranma's smile instantly vanished and was replaced by a dark look. "I ran  
into some hostiles."  
  
Nabiki almost recoiled at his sudden change. *Damn, he's scary when he  
does that. * She thought. Outwardly though she only raised an eyebrow.  
"Really? Well, I'm glad I didn't have to follow then."  
  
"It wasn't very dangerous actually, although I can understand your  
relief. We gotta start that training of yours soon..." Ranma shrugged,  
returning to his normal mood. "Anyway, it probably is prudent to have  
the armour activated anyway, considering where we are going."  
  
"Hey! We aren't that bad, you know. We take diplomatic envoys very  
seriously." Mara protested.  
  
Ranma smirked and put an arm around her shoulder. "Oh you're bad  
alright. It's in your nature. Of course when one is the biggest baddie  
on the block, one tends to like your kind."  
  
To the side Nabiki rolled her eyes and sighed theatrically. "And here we  
go again... Another ego trip as large as Mt. Fuji."  
  
"Why Nabiki! I didn't know you cared." Ranma exclaimed in an overly  
cheerful tone.  
  
Mara only laughed. "C'mon you big 'baddie', we've got a show to attend  
to." She said motioning for both Ranma and Nabiki to follow her as she  
left the café.  
  
She was still laughing at their antics when she opened a gateway to  
hell.  
  
***  
  
A short while later  
  
"Well, that went smoother than an XP-380 Kuat Drive Yards Railgun in  
absolute vacuum." Ranma commented as he stepped out of the portal.  
  
"Not that I know exactly what that means but yeah, it went very well.  
From what you told me, I was half expecting to lose my soul at every  
other minute." Nabiki continued. "Instead we were greeted by a literal  
red carpet. Heck, I could get used to being pampered all the time."  
  
"I told you we weren't that bad." Mara smirked, her head sticking out of  
the portal.  
  
"True enough." Ranma conceded. "However, I have enough experience to  
know that you should never truly trust a demonic creature. Of course,  
that only makes you more loveable."  
  
"Now I think I've heard everything. A mortal calling me loveable?" Mara  
stated in mock shock.  
  
"Well, I'm not exactly your standard mortal, now am I?" Ranma grinned.  
"Anyway, it was a pleasure working with you."  
  
"The same to you. Of course if you want to, we could always start  
working on another type of 'pleasure'." The demoness purred seductively.  
  
"You know that doesn't work on me." Ranma laughed.  
  
"Always worth a shot." Mara said with a shrug. "Anyway, I hope you two  
don't mind if I drop by for a visit sometime in the near future?"  
  
"Works for me." Nabiki answered. "And as for Ranma, well who cares about  
what he want?" She finished with a smirk and a wink.  
  
"True. Well, ciao!" Mara called out and got back into the portal before  
it closed with a swirl of light.  
  
Ranma turned to Nabiki. "So..." He began. "Doing anything special now?"'  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "No I have nothing planned. Why are you  
asking? Trying to get a date or something?" She finished with a smirk.  
  
"Well if you want to..." Ranma grinned. "Nah, seriously if you haven't  
anything special to do then how about I introduce you to the Sailor  
Senshi?"  
  
"The Sailor Senshi?!" Nabiki's eyes almost bugged out of her sockets,  
not truly believing what she was hearing. All the moneymaking  
opportunities she could think off...  
  
As if sensing where her mind was heading, Ranma spoke up, effectively  
derailing her train of thoughts. "Yes, the Sailor Senshi. I've recently  
started training them as part of a deal we have. However, remember that  
you are an agent of the UN ETSPP bureau now, so don't go back into your  
old behaviour. You're not at Furinkan anymore." He admonished.  
  
Nabiki felt a bit ashamed of her relapse into her mercenary ways.  
Outwardly she didn't show anything though. "Don't worry about me.  
Really, who do you take me for?" She feigned ignorance.  
  
"Tendo Nabiki, former Ice Queen of Furinkan." Ranma grinned as he opened  
a portal of his own and promptly stepped through it.  
  
Nabiki was a bit stunned by his words by quickly collected herself.  
"Hey! Who are you calling former?" She tried to retort as she followed  
him through the portal.  
  
***  
  
A short while later, Ranma and Nabiki entered a rather big park, in...  
well Nabiki didn't really know where they were since Ranma hadn't told  
her. Besides it didn't really matter to her as soon as she saw them. The  
Sailor Senshi.  
  
Nabiki were not someone who idolized anyone or anything easily, instead  
she was a firm believer that every person should think and live by his  
or her own abilities. However, if there ever were a moment she would  
make an exception to that rule it would be now. Sure their clothes were  
actually a bit silly with those fukus and all, but somehow they had such  
a powerful presence by just being there that she almost wanted to kneel  
and worship them. Nabiki couldn't find words to describe the feeling of  
standing in close proximity to these girls. They were an urban legend  
for crying out loud!  
  
She snapped out of her daze when Ranma chuckled. "What's so funny?" She  
asked.  
  
"You." Ranma answered. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." He finished  
with a grin.  
  
Now it was Nabiki's turn to laugh. "I should have seen that coming."  
  
Ranma turned to the Senshi. "Don't worry you guys. She's with me."  
  
The Senshi, who had been somewhat suspicious of the new girl, came  
forward. Sailor Mars who still was suspicious spoke up. "And who are  
you?" She asked, eyeing Nabiki.  
  
Nabiki instantly recognized Mars' look. "I could ask the same from you."  
She crossed her arms.  
  
Before the situation could get any worse, Sailor Moon interrupted. "Stop  
it Mars. Ranma took her here and I trust him." She frowned at the other  
girl. However as she turned to Nabiki the frown disappeared and was  
replaced with a smile that could melt almost anyone's heart. "Hi! I'm  
Sailor Moon! Defender of love and justice!" She gushed and held out her  
hand.  
  
Nabiki sweatdropped and marvelled at the almost visible aura of  
sweetness this girl radiated. Never the less she took the offered hand  
and shook it firmly. "I'm Nabiki Tendo, Agent of the UN ETSPP and this  
bonehead's partner." She smirked at Ranma.  
  
Ranma looked indignant. "Hey! Only Chief can call me that."  
  
Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "And why's that?"  
  
"Because Chief is the chief." Ranma replied absently. "Anyway, I take it  
you want more training." He said to the Senshi.  
  
Several groans came from the girls. "Not really." Sailor Venus answered.  
"I'm still sore from the last time."  
  
Ranma only grinned. "No pain, no gain." He turned to Saturn. "Do you  
know where the rest of the outers are?"  
  
Saturn was about to answer no, when suddenly a portal opened up behind  
Ranma. "Ah, that's probably them, or at least Pluto." Ranma said and  
turned. However he never got to finish it as he heard three voices call  
out behind him.  
  
"World Shaking!"  
"Deep Submerge!"  
"Dead Scream!"  
  
The combined blast of three Senshi slammed into Ranma's undefended back,  
and he was rocketed in high speed through several trees, breaking them  
as he touched them.  
  
"Ranma!" Nabiki called out. She quickly pivoted facing the newcomers,  
calling her gun from the subspace pocket. "Alright, you pussies, you  
just messed with the wrong people." She yelled at the attackers.  
Inwardly she was slightly shocked at her own words. *Where did that come  
from? * She wondered. *Must be the gun. * She reasoned. However she got  
not further in her musings, because a voice from the side interrupted  
her thoughts.  
  
"~Cough~ Damn, that hurt."  
  
Ranma slowly stood up from the rubble. He had several shallow cuts, as  
well as a couple deeper ones. His right arm was clearly dislocated and a  
two-inch wide, one feet long broken branch penetrated his right side.  
All in all, he looked rather gruesome, especially with the branch  
sticking out of his side. He reached with his left arm and grabbed his  
right. He took a breath and quickly put it back into its socket. His  
scream of pain made the Senshi's hair stand on end.  
  
"Gotta love the pain." He said in a hoarse voice.  
  
"How are you?" Nabiki asked in concern, still aiming her gun at the  
Senshi.  
  
"I've been better. Of course it's not often I've had a ruptured spleen,  
punctured lung, severe concussion and too many internal bleedings to  
count at the same time and still been standing. But I'll manage. By the  
way, your safety is still on. " Ranma replied absently. Nabiki eeped and  
quickly remedied her mistake. Ranma however focused a smouldering glare  
on Pluto.  
  
"I like endurance training as much as the next guy, but what the HELL  
ARE YOU DOING?" He practically screamed in rage at the end.  
  
"You don't know?" Sailor Pluto asked in mock surprise. "Funny, I was  
certain I saw you dealing with demons." She smirked evilly.  
  
"Pluto what are you talking about?" Sailor Moon demanded.  
  
"I have been monitoring him at every opportunity I've gotten. Imagine my  
surprise when he, a supposed ally to us, attacked three goddesses and  
followed a demon to hell, only to make a deal with Satan." The Senshi  
gasped at this. "Well, I wasn't really surprised, after all, I've  
suspected from day one that he would backstab us."  
  
Moon turned to Ranma. "Is this true?"  
  
Ranma shifted to alleviate the pain before answering. "As for attacking  
three deities, following a demon to hell and making a deal with Satan,  
it is all true." The Senshi tensed, preparing to attack.  
  
"However..." Ranma continued. "Did you ever stop to consider WHY I did  
all this?"  
  
Pluto snorted. "Why should I? You just don't attack goddesses and deal  
with demon-creatures."  
  
Ranma only looked more pissed than before. "It is standard practice to  
know the facts before accusing someone of a crime." He started counting  
on his fingers" One. I attacked the goddesses since the damn bastards  
attacked me first. Two. I followed the demon, and by the way, that  
should be demoness since it was a she, since I had to make a deal with  
the leader of hell. Three. The deal I made with hell was of a diplomatic  
nature. In fact, I established an embassy, so that whenever an agent of  
hell is on earth, or Midgard as they refer to it, the UN ETSPP bureau  
knows about it. Four. The UN authorized me to make contact with hell  
since they figured I could survive if anything went wrong with the  
negotiations. Five. I happen to like hell. They may have some strange  
behaviour, like hating all that lives and trying to start Ragnarok, but  
they aren't hypocrites. Besides, I had to thaw up a little since I had  
frostbite from being too close to a certain frigid old bitch." He spat.  
  
The wasn't so confident anymore. If what Ranma just told them was true,  
then she just had made a grave mistake. She could see the inners and  
Sailor Saturn hesitating and she could feel Neptune and Uranus'  
reluctance. She banished those thoughts. She had already made her move  
and was now committed to finishing it. Besides, she just couldn't forget  
that strand in time...  
  
Ranma's pissed expression had by now turned into an evil smile. "Oh  
yeah, you've made a mistake, a big one at that. I'm gonna kick your cute  
little butts so hard, you're gonna have to sit and shit on the moon."  
  
He got into a loose stance while Pluto, Uranus and Neptune tensed.  
  
The only warning they got was Ranma's eyes changing colour from green to  
red.  
  
The three launched their attacks simultaneously as soon as they saw him  
move. Yet even without his suit Ranma and injured on top of that, Ranma  
was still really fast. He zigzagged through the attacks without a  
scratch and he finished his charge by slamming into Uranus. A fist to  
the gut made her double over in pain. Ranma followed up with a blow to  
the back, effectively slamming Uranus into the ground. He picked her up  
by her hair and threw her straight at Pluto. Sailor Pluto didn't have  
time to dodge since she was preparing another dead scream and was pinned  
by Uranus' limp body.  
  
Meanwhile Neptune launched another attack. Ranma evaded by jumping high  
and landing only inches from her. In sheer desperation she threw a punch  
aimed at Ranma's face, which he easily evaded by leaning his head to the  
left. He quickly jabbed her at her elbows making her loose all control  
of her arms. Two more jabs, this time at the sides of her neck and she  
found she couldn't control her body. She fell to her knees staring up in  
horror at Ranma. She somehow found herself staring into his glowing red  
eyes and before long blackness enveloped her mind.  
  
Pluto could only watch as Ranma rendered Neptune helpless. If she didn't  
know better that was some advanced shiatsu pressure points she had not  
seen in a couple of thousand years. She frantically struggled to get  
Uranus' body off of her but by the time she got up she couldn't find  
Ranma.  
  
"Guess who." She heard a whisper from behind.  
  
She tried to whirl around but found herself restrained. She struggled  
futilely until Ranma twisted her arm and dislocated her elbow. She bit  
down a scream but could not prevent a tear from escaping. She could see  
the inners and Saturn ready to take action but not willing since Nabiki  
still had her gun aimed at them.  
  
"Release me! She yelled despite the pain.  
  
"Just shut up and listen." Ranma said while shifting his grip. With a  
quick twist, he could easily snap her neck.  
  
"I never have been your enemy, but if this keeps up that will change. As  
for the supposed treason, you could always check with the bureau about  
my assignment." He was in obvious pain from his wounds when he spoke. "I  
will release you now Pluto, but know this, I won't be this nice if you  
try something again."  
  
He practically threw Sailor Pluto to the ground in front of the Senshi.  
"What are you standing around for? Attack him when he's weakened!" She  
almost pleaded.  
  
"No." Moon answered and crossed her arms. "You have made a terrible  
mistake Pluto. I order you to stand down."  
  
"But..."  
  
"NO!" Moon said forcefully. "This has gone far enough. If you don't  
follow my orders, I will remove your powers as a Senshi."  
  
Pluto looked in horror at Sailor Moon. Could she really take away a  
Senshi's power? "Yes, my queen." The Senshi of Time replied weakly.  
  
"It's nice to see someone with common sense around here." Ranma  
commented. Moon blushed at the praise.  
  
"Oh, but you're hurt!" She exclaimed as if seeing his wounds for the  
first time.  
  
"No shit, Sherlock." Ranma said absently. He was looking at the branch  
that protruded one foot from his body. He suddenly grabbed it with both  
hands and yanked hard. A blood-curdling scream followed.  
  
He took a short look at the bloodied branch, and then threw it over his  
shoulder. "Nice one." He commented absently. Blood flowed freely from  
the gruesome hole.  
  
Sailor Saturn came forward. "Here, let me help you." Ranma tried to  
protest but she ignored him and applied her healing powers. A scream  
that could have woke up the dead followed.  
  
Saturn jumped back in fright. That certainly wasn't the normal reaction.  
She could see Ranma kneeling and clutching his side. He was panting  
heavily. "What happened?" She asked looking truly confused and somewhat  
scared.  
  
Ranma took a couple of deep breaths before he answered. "Sorry, but you  
didn't gave me time to explain. Some types of accelerated healing just  
don't work on me. I get intense pain instead. Don't worry about it, you  
couldn't possibly know." He said with a weak smile. He stood up and  
started limping to the house, a trail of blood forming behind him.  
Hotaru was quickly was his side.  
  
"What are you doing? The wounds will only get worse if you move around."  
  
"Heh, why delay the inevitable." He said cryptically.  
  
"I think he's delirious or something." Venus said.  
  
"Maybe, but the fact remains that if I don't can't contact Washu-chan  
you will face something that could destroy this planet with ease."  
  
That stopped the girls. "What do you mean? And who is Washu-chan?"  
Sailor Moon asked, looking truly worried.  
  
"I'll tell you later. Now help me get to a phone." Ranma responded.  
  
"But..."  
  
Ranma spun around facing Moon, his movements becoming more and more  
sluggish. "Look, I'm going to be dead in a few minutes, and believe me,  
you don't want that to happen! Either you help me or get the hell out of  
my way." He tried to show her away but he clearly was loosing his  
strength and loosing it fast.  
  
"Get him a phone." Came a voice from the side.  
  
Sailor Moon whirled to face the speaker. "But..." She cut herself short  
as she found herself staring down the barrel of a gun. Nabiki's gun. In  
the ruckus they had forgotten about her.  
  
"Just get him a damn phone! Can't you see he's dying?" She yelled.  
  
"~Cough~ Damn straight." Ranma answered, his voice barely a whisper. He  
suddenly vomited blood and collapsed on the ground.  
  
Dismissing the gun, Nabiki ran over to him, not caring about the Senshi.  
"Damn it Ranma! You're not going to die, you hear me?!" She yelled at  
him.  
  
Ranma grinned weakly. "Yeah, it kinda sucks doesn't it? Your first true  
day on the job and it ends like this." He fiddled with something in his  
clothes and managed to hand it to Nabiki. "Here, it's the number to  
Washu. Just call her and get her here. She'll know what to do. I'm going  
to switch form to preserve blood. Then I'm going to go unconscious."  
  
Nabiki took the bloodied card from Ranma's fingers and true to his  
words; he became a she and shut her eyes. Standing up, she deftly fished  
her cell phone out of her clothes and dialled the number on the card.  
The seconds it took for the phone to connect felt like hours, maybe even  
days. "Is this Washu?" She spoke frantically into the phone when she  
finally heard a voice answer...  
  
***  
  
It was a rather morose group of people that currently occupied the  
Hikawa Shrine. Michiru and Haruka had been revived and their injuries  
tended to and Setsuna's arm had been reset back to its normal position.  
Still that was not making their mood any better. Usagi was beyond  
pissed, and she had lectured them non-stop for almost two hours  
straight. When most of her anger had been vented, she finally calmed  
down enough to start heeding the moon cats' pleads of a through  
explanation. And again she started, only this time her anger actually  
made sense to Haruka, Michiru, Luna and Artemis since she indeed did  
explain what had happened.  
  
As it turned out, 30 seconds after Nabiki had reached 'Washu', a portal  
reminiscent of Ranma's opened up on their position. Out came a young  
redhead, no more than 13 years old, and she was absolutely furious. The  
cold glare she gave them before she stepped into the portal together  
with Nabiki and Ranma's unconscious body could have frozen hell over,  
and it also held a promise of bodily harm. The intent was clear; she  
would be back for a 'talk'.  
  
Just as Usagi was beginning to wind down after another hour, the redhead  
from earlier unexpectedly turned up in the doorway to the shrine. "Well,  
well. Here you are... I've been 'dying' to talk with you." She said, her  
voice full of contempt and menace.  
  
Usagi gulped. How could such a small girl frighten her more than all of  
their enemies put together? "How is he?" She asked, her natural  
overwhelming concern managing to override the fear.  
  
"He's stable. Although, I didn't expect him to make it through the first  
hour." The girl replied. She focused her eyes on Setsuna, making the  
Senshi of Pluto flinch. Then, in just a heartbeat, the redhead was in  
front of Setsuna, delivering a mighty slap. "Do you have any idea of  
what you almost managed to accomplish?!" The diminutive redhead almost  
screamed in Setsuna's face.  
  
Setsuna rubbed her cheek. Damn, that girl was strong. She shot a glare  
at the girl before answering. "Only what I thought I had to do. Only I  
was wrong about most of the reasons why had to it."  
  
The girl snorted unladylike. "Most of the reasons?" She asked in  
contempt. "Nabiki told me what happened and I find it hard to find even  
one reason for this attack."  
  
"Yes, most of the reasons. I admit that jumped to conclusions but that  
still doesn't change one thing, the main reason for my attack actually."  
Setsuna stated defiantly. "If he continues to live, he will destroy this  
planet!"  
  
The other Senshi gasped yet, the redhead only raised an eyebrow. "And  
just how can you be so sure of that? Are you clairvoyant or something?"  
  
"I don't need to answer that." The green haired Senshi spat back.  
  
The girl narrowed her eyes for a moment, obviously searching for a  
memory. "But of course!" She snapped her fingers. "You're Arianne. Still  
using the time gate I see."  
  
The Senshi's eyes almost bugged out of their sockets. She knew about the  
time gate! Then the first thing the girl said filtered through their  
minds.  
  
"Arianne?" Usagi hesitantly asked for all of them.  
  
The girl frowned. "Yes, Arianne. That's her name isn't it?"  
  
"No, her name is Setsuna." Usagi answered. "Right, Setsuna?" She asked  
and turned her attention to Setsuna, along with the other Senshi.  
  
Setsuna on the other hand was finding her feet very interesting at the  
moment. After a minute or two she finally gathered the courage to speak  
up. "Yes, Arianne is actually my real name. It's my birth name really,  
the one that my mother gave me 10387 years ago when I was born..." She  
said in a whisper. She looked up at the redhead tears threatening to  
fall any second. "H-how did you know that?" Setsuna managed to stammer  
out.  
  
"Because I've met your mother and I've met you as well." The young girl  
answered, still frowning. Sure she was pissed at this girl but she was  
not completely heartless.  
  
"What?" The assembled Senshi gasped. "How old are you?" Usagi asked in  
astonishment.  
  
The girl turned and put on a cute smile. "Why only 12000 years. A small  
thing like that is easy for the greatest genius in the universe to  
accomplish!" She proceeded to cackle maniacally. Large sweatdrops  
appeared on the back of everyone's heads.  
  
"Miss Washu..." Ami began; guessing that this indeed was the Washu Ranma  
had spoken of.  
  
"Call me Washu-chan!" The redhead interrupted.  
  
"Uhm, well... Washu-chan... You must have visited the Moon kingdom  
then?"  
  
Washu instantly turned serious. "Yes I most certainly have. Why do you  
ask?"  
  
"I was wondering... could you please tell us more about it?"  
  
"Maybe later." Washu replied. "Although I can tell you that my main  
reason for visiting was to see the fabled time gate. Boy was I  
disappointed with that piece of crap." She shook her head at the memory.  
  
"Piece of crap?" Setsuna asked, not truly believing what she heard.  
  
"You heard me. It was originally built as a device to do archaeological  
studies of the past, a time machine basically, but when it was completed  
it was discovered that it also had the ability to show the future as  
well. It's not very accurate though, since it's basically powered by the  
magic element chaos."  
  
"So you know magic then?" Ami cut in.  
  
Washu shook her head. "Strictly speaking, no, I do not 'know' magic as  
in casting spells and such. My forte is technology. However, I do know  
some of the theory behind it. In any case, magic is a very random type  
of energy, chaos especially so."  
  
Setsuna frowned. "So what are you trying to say? That the time gate  
can't be trusted?"  
  
"Yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying." Washu stated with a frown of her  
own.  
  
"Don't make me laugh." Setsuna snorted. "I've been using it for over  
10000 years, and I'm telling you, I saw Ranma destroying this planet. I  
just can't stand back and let something like that happen!"  
  
Washu pinched her nose. "I do not question you on what you saw. However  
have you stopped and considered just what led to that particular strand  
in time?" She asked in a tired voice. Getting no response she continued.  
"I have to admit that I cannot 100 % sure about this, but I'm still very  
certain that what you saw is what would have happened if you had managed  
to kill Ranma."  
  
Setsuna looked at Washu like she had grown another head. "That's  
impossible." She said in disbelief.  
  
"Oh, it's possible alright." Washu smirked. "You see Ranma has a small  
problem with dying. He gets back up."  
  
She looked around, noting the disbelieving looks she got. "What I'm  
about to tell you, will _not_ leave this room under _any_ circumstances,  
not even telling Ranma, understood?" She said with a dark look. Getting  
nods from the girls she continued. "This is only what Ranma has told me,  
so I have not been able to verify it, but I trust him implicitly. You  
see, Ranma may not age, but he is very much able to die. The problem is  
that if he dies he is revived almost instantly."  
  
"How can that be a problem?" Usagi asked.  
  
Washu sighed sadly. "Because he goes berserk. Depending on the size of  
the injury he has sustained, it takes everything between one to four  
minutes from his revival for him to regain consciousness. And during  
those crucial minutes he becomes an unstoppable killing machine,  
slaughtering everything in his path, often destroying a continent or two  
in the process. He also told me that a number of planets have been  
obliterated as a consequence of his berserker rage."  
  
The Senshi looked quite pale after that revelation. "You can see what  
I'm getting at." Washu shook her head. "I can't even begin to imagine  
how he feels, knowing that he is responsible for the deaths of millions,  
maybe even billions of people, yet having no recollection of it and no  
ability to stop it."  
  
Haruka, Michiru and especially Setsuna felt like disappearing from the  
face of the earth because of the overwhelming shame. By trying to defend  
earth, they could very well have caused its destruction. The bitter  
irony in that, didn't escape them. Of course there always was the chance  
that Washu might have lied to them, but somehow none of them felt it to  
be very likely.  
  
For Setsuna, Washu's revelation was particularly devastating. Almost her  
entire life had consisted of the time gates. It had become almost like a  
trusted friend to Setsuna. Always being there and never failing her. And  
now it was possible that her 'friend' was nothing more than an  
unreliable 'backstabber'. The very thought was ridiculous, yet at the  
same time it could not be ignored. Just what if, what if there was  
another thing that she had not been shown or been shown incorrectly? The  
consequences of something like that could be far reaching, possibly even  
affecting Crystal Tokyo. She didn't even dare think of it.  
  
Just as she was finished her reverie, she saw Washu opening a portal.  
"Wait!" She called out, suspecting that the young girl was leaving.  
  
Washu turned, eyeing Setsuna with disgust. "And just what do you want?"  
  
Setsuna could help but fidget under the harsh glare. "I want to, no need  
to come with you."  
  
An eyebrow went up. "Haven't you done enough damage in one day?"  
  
Setsuna bit her lip. Her pride didn't allow it but... *To hell with  
pride! * She admonished herself. "I... I need to apologize..." She said  
in a whisper.  
  
Washu's other eyebrow came up. "Apologize?" She asked incredulously.  
  
"Why I think it's a _great_ idea!" Usagi spoke up, laying special  
emphasis on great. "I won't allow her to come back until she has  
reconciled with Ranma."  
  
Setsuna winced, understanding exactly what Usagi was trying to say.  
Apparently so did Washu since she sighed. "Damn it then. Follow me." She  
said over her shoulder, not bothering to look back, just as she  
disappeared through the portal.  
  
Setsuna took a brief look around. The looks she got varied immensely,  
from suspicion to encouragement. Yet it was Usagi's face that told her  
all she needed to know. Apologize or I will never again respect you.  
Setsuna took a deep breath, steeled herself and followed...  
  
***  
  
Ranma walked. Why he was walking, he did not know. Neither did he know  
anything about where he was walking. He didn't have a destination. He  
just walked.  
  
As he walked he could feel emotions surging through him. Some where of  
happiness, other of anger, and yet other of sadness. He smiled, got mad  
and he cried. Yet he did not stop. He just walked.  
  
Suddenly he stopped. He was happy right now, but why he did not know...  
No, that was not right. He did know. His wife. His daughter. He could  
not help smiling.  
  
But there was something wrong. Something wrong with his wife and  
daughter. His wife daughter. His wifedaughter. He frowned. They had  
merged in a blurry image and he could no longer distinguish them from  
each other.  
  
Suddenly the image cleared and he could see... Slaanesh. No, that was  
not right. It was not Slaanesh. It was... himself, or rather herself.  
His other form. He frowned.  
  
He took a closer look at himself/herself/Slaanesh. How could he be  
Slaanesh? That was ridiculous. Yet it felt... not as wrong as he thought  
it would.  
  
He looked her over. Something was wrong. Wrong with her. Wrong. Wrong!  
WRONG!!! Something was so utterly wrong about her that he wanted to  
scream, though he could not for the life of him figure it out.  
  
Just as he was about to give up he finally noticed what was wrong. Her  
eyes. They were blue.  
  
*** - - - - ***  
  
And that, my ladies and gentlemen, concludes chapter 4 of Balance of  
Chaos.  
  
Lots of things have happened and as is normal, few answers are given and  
more questions are raised. Just why were Ranma so hostile towards the  
Norns? Why was Mara so nice? How come Ranma is an unstoppable killing  
machine when dead? Could Washu be right about the time gates? And  
finally, what was that on the end? Some questions will be answered in  
chapter 5: Black nor White, but I assure you, most of them will not be  
answered until the very end.  
  
Dang, the entire chapter 4 was the hardest thing I've ever written, not  
to mention the biggest. The story is finally starting to get somewhere  
interesting, though there are still big secrets that need to be revealed  
before the final chapter. That however will take some time. I plan on  
working on my other stories for a while now so Balance of Chaos will be  
"off duty" a while. In any case, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I  
hope you will continue to read it until the very end.  
  
If you wish to contact me then do so at:  
kenneth@gon.nu or kenneth.lonnberg@bodenonline.com  
  
My works will be available at:  
My own page, The MegaRoad - http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/macvf1fanfic  
My fanfiction.net account -  
http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=301246  
  
And when they get around to update/accept my fics, these sites will also  
feature my fics:  
Lady Cosmo's Fanfic Library - http://ladycosmos.anifics.com/  
Ranchan & co. Crossing bridges - http://tannim.anifics.com/ 


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